Behaviour of solid phase ethyl cyanide in simulated conditions of Titan

•We present a detailed spectroscopic and photochemical analysis of processes that occur during irradiation of ethyl cyanide pure ice.•The branching ratios of the primary products of ethyl cyanide photolysis were determined at characteristic temperatures of Titan thanks to the value of the νCN stretching band strength of ethyl cyanide that has been calculated to be 2.02 × 10–18 cm molecule−1.•The desorption energy of ethyl cyanide has been calculated to be 36.75 ( ± 0.55) kJ mol−1 using IRTF and mass spectroscopical techniques.•High energetic photolysis (λ > 120 nm) have been performed and we identified ethyl isocyanide, vinyl cyanide, cyanoacetylene, ethylene, acetylene, cyanhydric acid and a methylketenimine form as photoproducts from ethyl cyanide.•We also report here for the first time the values of the photodissociation cross sections of C2H5CN for different temperatures.