Hello all,
I was looking at Wikipedia and found this
"Several entrainers can be used for this specific process: benzene, pentane, cyclohexane, hexane, heptane, isooctane, acetone, and diethyl ether are
all options as the mixture."
Does this mean that Ethanol can be distilled to a higher concentration than ~95%(the azeotrope with water) by addition of acetone? Is this a similar
process to that of the addition of benzene?
(Oh, my first post so if I am doing something wrong eddiqutte wise, alert me please).
[Edited on 2-4-2013 by Finnnicus]DutchChemistryBox - 3-4-2013 at 07:33
Theoretically, I would say yes.
I guess the aceton wil stick to the water and evaporate together before the alcohol does.
But I do not have any experience with it.Nicodem - 3-4-2013 at 09:25
(Oh, my first post so if I am doing something wrong eddiqutte wise, alert me please).
You are doing nothing wrong, but I can say you are doing something weird, because you are asking about a claim from Wikipedia, that is actually
equipped with a reference: DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2010.03.015
It is like asking strangers for directions while staring at the signpost directing you to the desired location. Not wrong, but weird. If you feel
illiterate in regard to the reference system, you can read the forum guidelines on the basics about doing the literature work.
Welcome.
Finnnicus - 4-4-2013 at 02:13
Thank you both, I thought bring moved to the second page was like a death sentence for an unanswered thread. Obviously not . I shall read the referencing guide, I omitted it the first time.
The reference given by Wikipedia requires the purchase of a PDF to read the section of text concerning the 'entrainers' which confuses the referencing
even more!
Nicodem, any help relating to the science part? Nicodem - 5-4-2013 at 08:34
Articles are generally not acquired, but accessed via IP recognition. I don't have the access to that journal, but you could always ask in the
References section. Surely someone can access it. Since you don't have the access to that forum section, I will put the request myself.solo - 5-4-2013 at 09:42
Reference Information
Anhydrous ethanol: A renewable source of energy
Santosh Kumar, Neetu Singh, Ram Prasad Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 14
(2010) 1830–1844
DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2010.03.015
A better solution is to use a drying compound. For alcohols, CaO is recommended. CuSO4 and K2CO3 will also do the job.Finnnicus - 5-4-2013 at 18:41
Yes I do understand that drying agents are the most viable route (hmm, maybe molecular sieves?), but I wanted to know if available acetone is as
usable as carcinogenic benzene for azeotropic distillation.
Oh, and thanks solo.S.C. Wack - 6-4-2013 at 16:18
This is a good example of science literature, and how (not) to use it.
The wiki says something as fact. It happens to give a reference, which gives the statement as fact with reference. The reference gives the statement
as fact without a reference, and it's not mentioned otherwise.
The obvious way to answer this in a minute or so, without posting to a forum, is to look in azeotrope books. And one in pdf, by Horsley (Advances in
Chemistry series #116) says there is no azeotrope.
The obvious way to find real ternary azeotropes known to work is with a standard reference such as Lange's.
BTW Industrial Chemical Process is not the friend of (or in general relevant to) people who aren't doing industrial chemistry.
. I shall read the referencing guide, I omitted it the first time.