Bottle of surgical spirit burning in surgical spirit

Rubbing alcohol, known as surgical spirit in the British Pharmacopoeia, refers to a group of

denatured alcohol Denatured alcohol, also known as methylated spirits, metho, or meths in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, and as Rectified spirit, denatured rectified spirit, is ethanol that has additives to make it poisonou ...

solutions commonly used as topical

disinfectant A disinfectant is a chemical substance or compound used to inactivate or destroy microorganisms on inert surfaces. Disinfection does not necessarily kill all microorganisms, especially resistant bacterial spores; it is less effective than ...

. In addition to its medical applications, rubbing alcohol is employed in various industrial and household contexts. These solutions are primarily composed of either

isopropyl alcohol Isopropyl alcohol (IUPAC name propan-2-ol and also called isopropanol or 2-propanol) is a colorless, flammable, organic compound with a pungent alcoholic odor. Isopropyl alcohol, an organic polar molecule, is miscible in water, ethanol, an ...

(isopropanol) or

ethanol Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol, with its formula also written as , or EtOH, where Et is the ps ...

, with isopropyl alcohol being the more widely available formulation. The

United States Pharmacopeia The ''United States Pharmacopeia'' (''USP'') is a pharmacopeia (compendium of drug information) for the United States published annually by the over 200-year old United States Pharmacopeial Convention (usually also called the USP), a nonprofi ...

(USP) defines "isopropyl rubbing alcohol USP" as a solution containing approximately 70%

alcohol by volume Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as alc/vol or ABV) is a common measure of the amount of Alcohol (drug), alcohol contained in a given alcoholic beverage. It is defined as the volume the ethanol in the liquid would take if separated from the rest ...

of pure isopropanol, while "rubbing alcohol USP" refers to a solution containing approximately 70% by volume of denatured ethanol. In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the comparable product is "surgical spirit B.P.", defined by the British Pharmacopoeia as containing 95% methylated spirit, 2.5% castor oil, 2% diethyl phthalate, and 0.5%

methyl salicylate Methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen or wintergreen oil) is an organic compound with the formula C8H8O3. It is the methyl ester of salicylic acid. It is a colorless, viscous liquid with a sweet, fruity odor reminiscent of root beer (in which it ...

. Known alternatively as "wintergreen oil", methyl salicylate is also a common additive in North American rubbing alcohol products. Manufacturers are permitted to use their own formulations, and retail rubbing alcohol typically contains between 70% and 99% alcohol by volume, depending on the specific product and intended use. Rubbing alcohol is unsafe for human consumption. Isopropyl rubbing alcohol does not contain the ethyl alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, and even ethanol-based rubbing alcohol often contain substances that are toxic when ingested. For this reason, most rubbing alcohol contains a

bitterant A bitterant (or bittering agent) is a chemical that is added to a product to make it olfaction, smell or taste Taste#Bitterness, bitter. Bitterants are commonly used as aversive agents to discourage the inhalation or ingestion of toxic substances ...

which serve to make it undrinkable and prevent misuse.

History

The term "rubbing alcohol" came into prominence in North America during the Prohibition era of 1920 to 1933, when alcoholic beverages were prohibited throughout the United States. The term "rubbing" emphasized that this alcohol was not intended for consumption. Nevertheless it was well documented as a surrogate alcohol as early as 1925. Alcohol was already widely used as a

liniment Liniment (from , meaning "to smear, Anointing, anoint"), also called embrocation and heat rub, is a medicated topical preparation for application to the skin. Some liniments have a viscosity similar to that of water; others are lotion or balm; s ...

for

massage Massage is the rubbing or kneading of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet, or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pa ...

. There was no standard formula for rubbing alcohol, which was sometimes perfumed with additives such as wintergreen oil (

Properties

All rubbing alcohols are volatile and flammable. Ethyl rubbing alcohol has an extremely bitter taste from additives. The

specific gravity Relative density, also called specific gravity, is a dimensionless quantity defined as the ratio of the density (mass of a unit volume) of a substance to the density of a given reference material. Specific gravity for solids and liquids is nea ...

of Formula 23-H is between 0.8691 and 0.8771 at . Isopropyl rubbing alcohols contain from 50% to 99% by volume of isopropyl alcohol, the remainder consisting of water. Boiling points vary with the proportion of isopropyl alcohol from ; likewise, freezing points vary from . Surgical spirit BP boils at . Naturally colorless, products may contain color additives. They may also contain medically-inactive additives for fragrance, such as wintergreen oil (methyl salicylate), or for other purposes.

US legislation

To protect alcohol tax revenue in the United States, all preparations classified as ''Rubbing Alcohols'' (defined as those containing ethanol) must have poisonous additives to limit human consumption in accordance with the requirements of the US Treasury Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, using Formula 23-H (8 parts by volume of

acetone Acetone (2-propanone or dimethyl ketone) is an organic compound with the chemical formula, formula . It is the simplest and smallest ketone (). It is a colorless, highly Volatile organic compound, volatile, and flammable liquid with a charact ...

, 1.5 parts by volume of methyl isobutyl ketone, and 100 parts by volume of ethyl alcohol). It contains 87.5–91% by volume of absolute ethyl alcohol. The rest consists of water and the denaturants, with or without color additives, and perfume oils. Rubbing alcohol contains in each 100 ml more than 355 mg of sucrose octaacetate or more than 1.40 mg of denatonium benzoate. The preparation may be colored with one or more color additives. A suitable stabilizer may also be added.Expert Committee:(PA2)Pharmaceutical Analysis 2, USP28–NF23 Page 62, Pharmacopeial Forum:Volume No.27(3)Page 250

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Warnings

Product labels for rubbing alcohol include a number of Hazard symbol, hazard symbols about the chemical, including the flammability hazards and its intended use only as a topical antiseptic and not for internal wounds or consumption. It should be used in a well-ventilated area due to inhalation hazards. Poisoning can occur from ingestion, inhalation, absorption, or consumption of rubbing alcohol.

References

External links

Why Is Drinking Rubbing Alcohol Bad?
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rubbing Alcohol Antiseptics Cleaning products Household chemicals