Why would dry cleaners use nonpolar tetrachloroethylene, #C_2Cl_4# to get cheeseburger grease out of your clothes?

1 Answer
anor277
Jun 12, 2016

Because grease is a non-polar substance, which has some solubility in tetrachloroethylene.

Explanation:

Drycleaning literally means non-aqueous cleaning. Tetrachloroethylene, #"perc"# for perchloroethylene, is no longer used in dry cleaners because of safety concerns.

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