Question

Are esters harmful?

Answer 1

1. In chemistry, esters are sweet-smelling compounds which are formed by the reaction of an acid with an alcohol.
2. $$\begin{gathered} \mathrm{RCOOH}+\mathrm{R}\text{'}\mathrm{OH}\to \mathrm{RCOOR}\text{'}+{\mathrm{H}}_2\mathrm{O} \\ \left(\mathrm{Acid}\right)\left(\mathrm{Alcohol}\right)\left(\mathrm{Ester}\right)\left(\mathrm{Water}\right) \end{gathered}$$
3. Although they are pleasant smelling they do have certain characteristics that make them harmful.
4. They are highly flammable and some esters have toxic fumes.
5. So, yes some of them are harmful. For example: $\mathrm{Dimethyl}\mathrm{Sulphate}.$