In the chemical industry, ethane is mainly used to produce ethylene by steam cracking. When mixed with steam, the heavy hydrocarbons are cracked into light hydrocarbons at a high temperature of 900 degrees Celsius or higher, and the alkane becomes an olefin. A considerable portion of ethane in the steam cracking process becomes ethylene compared to other relatively heavy raw materials, while heavier compounds produce many mixtures, including many heavy olefins such as propylene, butadiene, and aromatic hydrocarbons. , reduce the composition of ethylene.
Ethane can also be used as a refrigerant in a refrigeration facility. In scientific research, liquid ethane is used in electron microscopy to make samples with high water content transparent. The thin water layer freezes rapidly when immersed in liquid ethane at a facility of -150 degrees or less and does not form crystals. Such rapid freezing does not destroy the structure of soft matter in liquid water as it does when crystallizing.
