Extremely useful and good for nature
Ethylene (C2H4) is not hazardous to water or soil and is not toxic to humans or animals. Ethylene is transported as a fluid in the raw material pipeline, i.e. in a state between gas and liquid.
Ethylene is commercially produced by steam cracking a variety of hydrocarbons. In Europe and Asia, ethylene is mainly produced from naphtha or gas oil, while in the United States, Canada and the Middle East it is also produced from ethane, propane and liquefied petroleum gas.
Ethylene is an important raw material for the chemical industry and a starting material for around 30 percent of all petrochemicals. Ethylene is used to produce numerous plastics, including polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), PET, cellulose acetate and polyvinyl acetate polymers. The products made from these materials are an integral part of everyday life: insulation materials, detergents and cleaning agents, beverage bottles, packaging materials, films, cable insulation, window frames, floor coverings, household goods, vehicle fittings, device housings, detergents, and additives and raw materials for pharmaceutical preparations are just a few examples.
Ethylene (ethene) occurs naturally (in plants, etc.) and is also found in fruit and vegetables. Many ripening fruits release one of the most important plant hormones. This is gaseous and is called ethylene (also known as ethene). This ethylene controls the ripening process of many fruits and vegetables. For this reason, bananas and ripe apples should not be stored next to each other in a fruit bowl. Within a very short time, the bananas will become spotted and overripe due to the ethylene from the apples.
However, this effect is now being exploited deliberately. Bananas, pineapples and tomatoes (among many other things) are now imported from far away. They are picked unripe, even green. This makes them easier to transport and protects them from mould.
To make them look appetising for sale, they are treated with ethylene gas to ripen them artificially. This turns even green bananas yellow and tomatoes red. As a result, the bananas we buy in the supermarket look ripe on the outside, but their flesh tastes ‘green’.