اكتشاف إسترات اللاكتات: المادة السحرية ذات التطبيقات المتنوعة

استرات اللاكتات are the products of the esterification reaction between lactic acid and alcohols, with the general chemical structure formula being R-COO-R’, where R represents the hydrocarbon portion of lactic acid, and R’ represents the part of the alcohol left after the hydroxyl group is removed. This structure imparts a range of unique physical and chemical properties to lactate esters. In terms of solubility, lactate esters exhibit excellent performance, being miscible with a variety of organic solvents, including water, alcohols, aromatic hydrocarbons, esters, hydrocarbons, and oils. This makes them highly effective in various chemical reactions and industrial processes that require solvent participation, playing a crucial role in promoting reactions or uniformly dispersing other substances.

In the paint and coatings industry, lactate esters play an indispensable role in enhancing the overall performance of coatings. Lactate esters have a positive impact on the film-forming properties of paints, enabling them to form a uniform, continuous, and dense film after application. This is because lactate esters possess excellent solubility and volatility, helping resins and other film-forming substances flow and arrange adequately during the drying process to form a complete film structure. In high-quality furniture coatings, the addition of lactate esters makes the film smoother and more even, effectively reducing defects like pinholes and bubbles, thus improving the appearance and quality of the product.

 استرات اللاكتات also significantly improve the gloss of coatings. Their excellent solvent properties enable better dispersion of pigments and fillers in the paint, reducing light scattering and increasing the paint’s ability to reflect light, resulting in a higher gloss. In automotive coatings, the use of lactate esters makes the automotive surface coating more brilliant and eye-catching, not only enhancing the vehicle’s aesthetic appeal but also improving its weather resistance and durability.

Furthermore, lactate esters can enhance the adhesion of coatings. They can form chemical bonds or intermolecular forces with the molecules on the surface of the substrate, ensuring that the coating adheres tightly to the surface and is less likely to peel off. In exterior wall coatings for buildings, the presence of lactate esters helps the paint adhere securely to the wall surface, maintaining good adhesion even in harsh environmental conditions such as prolonged exposure to wind, sunlight, and rain, thus extending the coating’s service life.

In the electronics industry, lactate esters, particularly ethyl lactate, are becoming increasingly important and providing strong support for the development of the electronics industry. In electronic cleaning, lactate esters are ideal cleaning agents. Ethyl lactate has a high boiling point and low volatility, with a boiling point around 154°C, which makes it stable in liquid form during cleaning processes and not prone to rapid evaporation. At the same time, it has strong solubility for oils, human proteins, water-soluble dirt, and other contaminants, effectively removing various pollutants from the surfaces of electronic components. In the cleaning of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels, ethyl lactate can quickly dissolve and remove the residual adhesive from the packaging process, ensuring the panel’s cleanliness and enabling smooth subsequent packaging procedures. During wafer manufacturing, ethyl lactate effectively removes oil, dust, and other impurities from the wafer surface. If these contaminants are not removed in time, they could negatively affect the performance of the wafer and the quality of the chip.

استرات اللاكتات also offer excellent protection for electronic components. As a small molecule surfactant with a hydroxyl group, it has good penetrability and can clean difficult-to-reach dirt in tiny gaps and holes without damaging the electronic components. Compared to some traditional electronic cleaning agents, lactate esters have the advantages of being non-toxic and biodegradable. Their cleaning waste liquid can be directly discharged without causing environmental pollution, which is crucial for the environmentally-conscious electronics industry. In cleaning precision electronic components, using lactate esters as a cleaning agent ensures cleaning effectiveness while reducing the risk of corrosion or damage to the components, improving the yield and service life of electronic parts.

Additionally, lactate esters play an important role in the manufacturing and cleaning processes of photoresists. Electronic-grade ethyl lactate can be used as a solvent for photoresists, effectively dissolving resins, photosensitizers, and additives, forming a uniform and stable liquid photoresist that ensures accurate pattern transfer during the photolithography process. After the etching of the photoresist, any excess material needs to be cleaned. Traditional cleaning solvents like NMP (N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone) are considered toxic in many countries, posing risks to both the environment and workers’ health. Ethyl lactate can replace NMP in photoresist cleaning, not only achieving excellent cleaning results but also meeting environmental protection standards, making it the development trend in the photoresist cleaning industry.

In the petrochemical industry, lactate esters can be used as organic synthesis raw materials, participating in various chemical reactions and providing new routes and raw material options for synthesizing complex organic compounds. In the synthesis of fine chemicals, lactate esters can serve as intermediates, undergoing a series of chemical reactions to transform into compounds with specific functions and structures, enriching the variety and performance of chemical products.

In agriculture, lactate esters also have unique applications. Certain lactate esters can enhance the effectiveness of pesticides on plants by increasing their adhesion and permeability on the plant surface, thereby improving the utilization rate of pesticides and more effectively exerting their insecticidal, bactericidal, and other effects. Research has also shown that etherified lactate esters can reduce the drift phenomenon during plant treatment, allowing pesticides to be more accurately applied to the target plants, improving application efficiency while minimizing environmental impact.

With the growing global focus on environmental protection and sustainable development, lactate esters, as a green and eco-friendly material, have vast market potential. In the future, with continuous technological advancement and innovation, lactate esters are expected to be applied in more fields, and their performance will continue to be optimized and improved. For instance, in the pharmaceutical industry, more efficient drug delivery systems and sustained-release systems based on lactate esters may be developed to improve therapeutic effects and reduce side effects. In the electronics industry, as electronic products continue to evolve towards miniaturization and high performance, the demand for electronic cleaning agents and photoresist materials is increasing. Lactate esters, with their environmental friendliness and efficiency, are poised to capture a larger market share in this sector.