1,3-dioxolane can be used as a solvent:
- For the extraction of biodegradable poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) from biomass.
- To produce stable dispersions of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) for the synthesis of modified glassy carbon electrodes.
- To synthesize copolymers (polyoxymethylene) by cationic copolymerization of 1,3,5-trioxane in the presence of maghnite-H+ as a catalyst.
It is also used as a reactant to prepare quasi-solid-state poly(1,3-dioxolane) electrolyte by Sc(OTf)
3 catalyzed ring-opening polymerization reactions.