Octafluoropropane
[CAS 76-19-7]

Identification

• Classification: Pharmaceutical intermediate >> Heterocyclic compound intermediate >> Pyridine compound >> Pyridine derivative
• Name: Octafluoropropane
• Synonyms: Perfluoropropane. 1,1,1,2,2,3,3,3-octafluoropropane
• Molecular Formula: C₃F₈
• Molecular Weight: 188.02
• CAS Registry Number: 76-19-7
• EC Number: 200-941-9
• SMILES: C(C(F)(F)F)(C(F)(F)F)(F)F

Safety Data

• Hazard Symbols: GHS04 Warning
• Risk Statements: H280
• Safety Statements: P410+P403P410+P403

Hazard Classification

Hazard	Class	Category Code	Hazard Statement
Gases under pressure (liquid)	Press. Gas (Liq.)		H280
Gases under pressure (compressed)	Press. Gas (Comp.)		H280
Specific target organ toxicity - repeated exposure	STOT RE	2	H373

chemBlink Chemical Story

Octafluoropropane, CAS 76-19-7, is the fully fluorinated three-carbon gas C3F8, also known as perfluoropropane, perflutren or refrigerant R-218. PubChem describes it as a colorless, relatively inert, nonflammable gas with a boiling point near -37 °C. Replacing every C-H bond of propane with C-F bonds gives the molecule exceptional chemical stability and creates several very different applications.

In electronics manufacturing, fluorocarbon gases are used in plasma processes for etching and chamber cleaning. Energetic plasma fragments can generate fluorine-containing reactive species that attack selected inorganic materials, while carbon-containing fragments can also influence passivation and etch profiles. PubChem's EPA manufacturing information places octafluoropropane in the computer and electronic product manufacturing sector.

C3F8 has a strikingly different medical use. Under the pharmaceutical name perflutren, octafluoropropane gas can be encapsulated inside microscopic bubbles used as ultrasound contrast agents. Gas-filled microspheres respond strongly to ultrasound and increase acoustic contrast, helping define cardiac structures in echocardiography. Here, the chemical inertness and low water solubility of the fluorocarbon help the gas persist inside the microbubble long enough to perform an imaging function.

Perfluoropropane is also known as R-218 and has been used in specialized refrigeration contexts. Its stability, however, has an environmental consequence: perfluorocarbons can persist in the atmosphere for very long periods and are powerful greenhouse gases. Thus an application based on chemical inertness must also account for that same inertness after release.

Octafluoropropane is a useful example of how physical context changes molecular function. In a plasma reactor it becomes a source of reactive fluorine fragments; inside a carefully engineered microbubble it remains an inert gas that improves ultrasound imaging; in the atmosphere, its resistance to reaction becomes an environmental liability. The molecule stays the same, but its surroundings determine which property matters most.

References:
1. PubChem, Perfluoropropane, CID 6432, CAS 76-19-7.
2. U.S. FDA, prescribing information for perflutren-containing ultrasound contrast agents.
3. U.S. EPA, Overview of Greenhouse Gases: Perfluorocarbons.

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