Propionitrile, also known as ethyl cyanide and propanenitrile, is an organic compound with the formula CH3CH2CN.

It is also prepared by the ammoxidation of propanol (propionaldehyde can also be used instead):[7] Propionitrile is a byproduct of the electrodimerisation of acrylonitrile to adiponitrile.

In the laboratory propanenitrile can also be produced by the dehydration of propionamide, by catalytic reduction of acrylonitrile, or by distilling ethyl sulfate and potassium cyanide.

Propionitrile is a solvent similar to acetonitrile but with a slightly higher boiling point.

[7] In 1979, the Kalama (Vega) plant in Beaufort, South Carolina experienced an explosion during the production of propionitrile by nickel-catalyzed hydrogenation of acrylonitrile.