It is a colorless liquid that is strongly acidic.

It soluble in both water and polar organic solvents.

[4] In many ways, it is comparable to trifluoroacetic acid.

The perfluoropropanoate form has been found in environmental samples.

[5] A convenient laboratory method for generating tetrafluoroethylene is the pyrolysis of the sodium salt of pentafluoropropionic acid:[6]