★ ★ Ethyl acetate is a widely used solvent, especially for paints, varnishes, lacquers, cleaning mixtures, and perfumes. It is used as a solvent for decaffeinating coffee beans. In the lab, ethyl acetate is a common solvent for column and thin-layer chromatography.

★ ★ Ethyl acetate commonly abbreviated EtOAc or EA is the organic compound with the formula CH3–COO–CH, 2–CH, 3, simplified to C, 4H, 8O2. This colorless liquid has a characteristic sweet smell. Ethyl acetate is the ester of ethanol and acetic acid. It is manufactured on a large scale for use as a solvent.