How is ethylhexylglycerin made?

Ethylhexylglycerin is a clear liquid preservative derived from vegetable glycerin, often coconut or palm oil.

Ethylhexylglycerin is a type of alkyl glyceryl ether that is made via a process called etherification. One way to make it involves reacting the sodium salt of acetone glycerol with hexadecyl iodide in boiling glycol dimethyl ether, yielding the acetone compound of α-hexadecyl glycerol. Hydrolysis of the protecting group with acetic acid results in the formation of chimyl alcohol. Alternatively, ethylhexylglycerin can be made by reducing triglycerides with lithium aluminum hydride and boron trifluoride etherate, followed by LAH hydrogenolysis. Catalytic splitting of ethylhexylglycidyl ether, followed by the addition of water, also produces the chemical. The product can then be purified by vacuum distillation.