The Main Uses of Morpholine and Its Development in Recent Years

Morpholine has a considerable proportion of metal corrosion inhibitors, mainly as a metal gas rust inhibitor to prevent metal from being corroded by the atmosphere, and has been widely used in mechanical instruments, automobiles, medical equipment and other fields. The toxicity of atmospheric metal antirusts such as dicyclohexylamine nitrite and cyclohexylamine carbonate to human body and environment is high, which restricts the promotion and application of gas phase antirusts. Morph, as a gas liquid corrosion inhibitor, has the advantage of low toxicity and good development prospect. In addition, morpholine can also be used in pH regulators, gas absorbers, synthetic herbicides and so on.

With the continuous progress of science and technology, new uses of morpholine are constantly being developed, such as new pesticides and pharmaceutical varieties have been continuously developed and produced, alkyl morpholine for chemical fiber industry solvents are in the research and development stage.

The main manufacturers of morpholine in the world (except China) are BASF, Huntsman and Japan Emulsifier Co., LTD., with a production capacity of about 38,000 tons/year. In 2021, the global demand for morpholine was 65,800 tons, an increase of 4.4%.

In China, 45% of morpholine is still used in the production of rubber promoters. The second largest use of morpholine is as a corrosion inhibitor, accounting for 18% of demand. The third use is the pharmaceutical industry, for the synthesis of morpholine guanidine, ibuprofen, promorate and other drugs, its demand accounts for about 15%.

In the past two years, scientists are studying the use of N-methylmorpholine oxide as an environmentally friendly solvent for artificial fibers. If the test is successful, it will create a demand for 10,000 tons of morpholine. In addition, morpholine can also be used in pH regulators, gas absorbers, synthetic herbicides, etc. Domestic development and research efforts are also increasing to promote the consumption of morpholine.

The main trend of research and development of morpholine is to use catalysts with higher activity, stronger stability and better selectivity, and to find catalysts with lower content of active components and simple carrier preparation process.