Sodium ethyl xanthate is a pale yellow powder. Its aqueous solutions are stable at high pH if not heated. It rapidly hydrolyses at pH less than 9 at 25 °C. It is the conjugate base of the ethyl xanthic acid, a strong acid with pK of 1.6 and pK estimated as 12.4 for the conjugate base. Sodium ethyl xanthate easily adsorbs on the surface of many sulfide minerals, a key step in froth flotation.
Xanthates are susceptible to hydrolysis and oxidation at low pH:
Oxidation gives diethyl dixanthogen disulfide: