What is Ethanol: Definition and 110 Discussions

Ethanol (also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic chemical compound. It is a simple alcohol with the chemical formula C2H6O. Its formula can be also written as CH3−CH2−OH or C2H5OH (an ethyl group linked to a hydroxyl group), and is often abbreviated as EtOH. Ethanol is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid with a slight characteristic odor. It is a psychoactive drug, recreational drug, and the active ingredient in alcoholic drinks.
Ethanol is naturally produced by the fermentation of sugars by yeasts or via petrochemical processes such as ethylene hydration. It has medical applications as an antiseptic and disinfectant. It is used as a chemical solvent and in the synthesis of organic compounds. Ethanol is a fuel source.

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  1. W

    How Do You Calculate the Bottoms Ethanol Fraction in Distillation?

    Haven't taken a course in distillation in a long time and now myself and some others are working on getting a fuel ethanol still going and wanted to do the calculations before we moved forward. We have a beer that is 12% alcohol and reaching a purity of 90% EtOH in the distillate. The mass...
  2. D

    Dissociation of HCl in Ethanol: Factors Affecting Ability

    In a textbook, HCl is said to remain as molecules in liquid ethanol. However, I still wonder whether HCl dissociates in ethanol to give H+ and Cl- ions. I think that as ethanol contains an OH group which is polar, ethanol molecules are capable of breaking the bond H-Cl in a manner similar to...
  3. U

    Ethanol Production: Is My Yield Limited to 13%?

    So for an experiment I must make ethanol from sugar using yeast. I've read that yeast dies at around 13% concentration of alcohol. So does that mean that my experiment is limited to a 13% yield?
  4. C

    Synthesis of keytones/aldehydes from ethanol formed from E1 (alkoxide reagent)?

    No, this isn't a homework question... Would it be feasible to use a tertiary haloalkane with sodium ethoxide, then use the ethanol formed from the deprotonation of the haloalkane in the E1 reaction for the synthesis of aldehydes or keytones? Just thinking it could be an alternative way...
  5. M

    Why Doesn't Paper Catch Fire When Dipped in Ethanol?

    Hi When you burn paper dipped in ethanol why doesn't the paper catch fire? I would have thought that the energy released from the ethanol combustion would raise the temperature of the paper to its ignition point? thanks
  6. I

    If you accidentally swallow a tiny amount of 70% ethanol in a lab,

    If you accidentally swallow a tiny amount of 70% ethanol in a lab, would you put yourself at a health risk?
  7. P

    Thermal Expansion of ethanol problem

    Homework Statement 1. You pour 108 cm3 of ethanol, at a temperature of - 10.0 C, into a graduated cylinder initially at 20.0 C, filling it to the very top. The cylinder is made of glass with a specific heat of 840 J/kgK and a coefficient of volume expansion of 1.2 × 10-5 K-1; its mass is 0.110...
  8. P

    What is the final temperature of ethanol after thermal equilibrium is reached?

    Homework Statement 1. You pour 108 cm^3 of ethanol, at a temperature of - 10.0 C, into a graduated cylinder initially at 20.0 C, filling it to the very top. The cylinder is made of glass with a specific heat of 840 J/kgK and a coefficient of volume expansion of 1.2 × 10^-5 K^-1; its mass is...
  9. P

    Energy problem - ice melted by burning ethanol

    Homework Statement How many grams of ice at 0°C could be melted by the heat produced when 10.0g of ethanol is burned?Homework Equations So I wrote out the combustion reaction: C2H5OH +3O2 ---> 2CO2 + 3H2OThe Attempt at a Solution First I though I had to find heat of formation for that...
  10. T

    Thermodynamics ethanol Question

    Homework Statement A student mixes 41.8g of ethanol at 15.8 C with 50.7 g of water at 49.2 C. If the resulting temperature of the solution is 28.4 C, what is the specific heat capacity of the ethanol? Homework Equations Given heat capacity of water already. The Attempt at a Solution...
  11. L

    Why is Ethanol Highly Flammable?

    Homework Statement Why is Ethanol so flammable? Homework Equations N/A The Attempt at a Solution I know the chemical is highly flammable, but why is it? Can't find anywhere on the web why it is so flammable. Thanks!
  12. N

    Elimination vs substitution & ethanol as a solvent

    Hello! I was looking into haloalkane reactions and the factors which determine the proportion of nucleophilic substitution to elimination reactions. I read that ethanol is more conducive to elimination reactions than substitution reactions, it mentions it being less polar than water, which...
  13. M

    What mass of the ethanol is she freezing?

    A technician freezes some ethanol by removing 9.53x10^4 J of heat energy from it at its melting point. What mass of the ethanol is she freezing?
  14. J

    Effect of Ethanol and Water Mixing on Randomness: A Discussion

    Homework Statement when ethanol an dwater are mixed, is randomness increased or decreased Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution Since these are miscible, I 'm equating that with 'comfortable' as a mixture and the 'comfort' being like a smaller amount of entropy than when...
  15. D

    News How Does Corn-Based Ethanol Impact Food Prices?

    I've heard it implied and outright stated numerous times that corn based ethanol was at least partially responsible for rising food costs. This has never made any sense to me. My reasoning: A) The majority of corn goes to feeding livestock B) When producing ethanol, there are...
  16. U

    Calculating Vapor Pressure Above Ethanol at 35°C

    Homework Statement Calculate the vapor pressure above liquid ethanol at 35 degrees C. The density of liquid ethanol at this temperature is 0.7767 kg/dm^3 and the true vapor pressure is 100 torr. Homework Equations K=P'/P , P'=vapor pressure, P=total pressure Antoine Equation: log P=...
  17. C

    How to Determine if Supplied 70% Ethanol was the correct Proportion of Alcohol

    You need to use 70% ethanol for an experiment. You only have a small quantity of 100% ethanol which is not enough to dilute and make the volume of 70% that you need. A chemistry friend of yours says he will make and distill some 70% ethanol for you. Unfortunately, your experiment doesn't work...
  18. R

    Make Butanol from Algae: Easier ABE Process or Ethanol to Butanol?

    I'm interested in making butanol from algae for a personal project, but the traditional ABE process seems a little inefficient (don't the bacteria die at concentrations of 2.5%?), so I started looking into other methods. From what I could get from...
  19. Greg Bernhardt

    Ethanol Fuel for Indoor Lanterns: Where to Buy?

    i bought an indoor lantern that calls for ethanol as its fuel, however none of my hardware stores seem to carry ethanol (Ace, Truevalue, Home Depot). They do carry regular denatured alcohol in the paint sections. Can I use that or where can I buy canned/bottled (bio)ethanol?
  20. C

    Is it safe to drink ethanol fuel?

    What would happen if you tried? I mean, I assume by default and in reasonable quantities you can, since grain alcohol is basically just ethanol, right? But do they put any additives in the stuff used for fuel, say? (Let us of course assume this is not ethanol/gasoline mix.) (This somewhat...
  21. P

    Ethanol Gas in My Town: Pros & Cons

    Dear all, They starts to sell ethanol gas in my town. It is only 5% ethanol as said. Concerning the power of the car, I think it's about the same. But I am not sure about the durability of some item, may it reduce the lifetime of some parts?. Thanks for all of your contribution.
  22. M

    Gasoline vs Ethanol: Choosing the Best Fuel for Your Wichita, KS Engine

    moe in wichita ks iam new here, i think i will like this site. iam trying to show a friend that gasoline is a better fuel than ethanol and/or methanol. i have most of the info i need. but what i do need is. 1 how much water is made when each one burns one gal. 2 air/fuel...
  23. U

    Ethanol (=alcohol) added to gasoline

    1. Incredibly it appears that in the United States gasoline may have ethanol in it as an additive. Up to 5% can be ethanol in the fuel sold there. Does anyone know if this is accurate? 2. How do I purify ethanol (=alcohol) to 99%? 3. Where do I buy 99.9% pure ethanol?
  24. C

    How does ethanol enter and disrupt cell membranes?

    I'm told that ethanol crosses a cell membrane very easily and can screw up the inner workings of the cell. But ethanol is very hydrophilic, so shouldn't it have a really tough time crossing a phospholipid membrane? does it hijack a transport protein or something?
  25. S

    Shot of Ethanol: Is 100% Possible?

    100% ethanol ?? Hi All First off, this is one cool site, lots of neat info. Now for my question. I have to clear an argument with one of my students. I work in an emergency department and I was teaching them the role of different alcohol poisonings and how we treat the overdoses. Ever so...
  26. B

    Producing Ethanol: The Role of Lewis Structures in Chemical Bonding

    producing ethanol... Homework Statement One way to produce ethanol for use as a gasoline additive is the reaction of water vapor with ethylene: H2C=CH2 + H2O ----> CH2CH2OH Rewrite this equation on a piece of paper using Lewis structures, and use those structures to answer the following...
  27. I

    Making up various concentraions of ethanol

    I am setting up a prac for a class next week, and need a little help on making up solutions of ethanol. (I am a microbiologist and haven't done any of this sort of stuff for years) The prac calls for 1M, 2M, 3M and 4M solutions of ethanol, and I have a 99% solution of ethanol. The way I...
  28. M

    Why does salt and ethanol affect CO2 production in fermentation?

    Why does salt and ethanol affect carbon dioxide production in the fermentation process of sucrose? Is it because the yeast has to break the sugar down by hydrolysis and that ethanol and salt are soluble, thus, in 'competition' with the yeast because they are occupying needed water molecules...
  29. F

    How Does Temperature Affect Ethanol Vapor Pressure and Mass?

    A 4.7-L sealed bottle containing 0.33 g of liquid ethanol, C2H6O, is placed in a refrigerator and reaches equilibrium with its vapor at -11 degrees C. a) What is the mass of ethanol present in the vapor? b) When the container is removed and warmed to room temperature, 20 degrees C, will all...
  30. rohanprabhu

    Conversion of Ethanol to Acetone

    Homework Statement Q] How would you convert Ethanol to Acetone? Homework Equations none.. The Attempt at a Solution What I need is a C=O group at the second carbon in a 3-carbon chain. What I need first is a 3rd carbon. To do this, I first could: i] React Ethanol with Ethanoic Acid...
  31. F

    Thermal Expansion Ethanol Problem

    Homework Statement You pour 108 cm^3 of ethanol, at a temperature of -10.0 degrees C, into a graduated cylinder initially at 20.0 degrees C, filling it to the very top. The cylinder is made of glass with a specific heat of 840 J/(kg *K) and a coefficient of volume expansion of 1.2 *10^-5 K^-1...
  32. L

    Mobil selling ethanol at $2.69 a gallon, but it's hidden from view

    My local news station visited a local Mobil station that sells ethanol. It sells for $2.69 a gallon, but the sign is hidden from view. I didn't know Mobil was selling this, and was wondering if ethanol is really that big of a threat to oil companies?
  33. A

    Titrating ASA Tablets: NaHO and Ethanol

    How do I find the quantity of active ingredient in a commercial ASA tablet, using titration and NaHO? I think that I'm supposed to use ethanol too.
  34. O

    Surface tension of ethanol solution?

    A query about, I think, extinguishing surface tension in 75% EtOH:H2O. I need to examine microscopically (~50x) specimens preserved and stored in the above medium, which I do by immersing them in dishes filled with the above, illuminating w fiber optics, and examining with a stereomicroscope...
  35. B

    Extract Ethanol from Aqueous Solution: Homemade Method

    Homemade Extraction Suppose I have an aqueous solution of acetone and ethanol. >While a simple or fractional distillation will do the job in a lab, Are there any "homemade" methods (i.e., using materials generally found in a home, non-laboratory setting) that can be used to extract...
  36. A

    Gasoline engine modification - ethanol fuel

    Hi guys, Im doing a group project on a conversion of a small motorcycle engine(suzuki dr125s) so that it can run on ethanol(have not decide on what proportion, maybe going to run it at 85% or more). The modifications and the reasons behind it : 1) Cleaning/changing the fuel...
  37. D

    Distilling Ethanol by Refrigerating

    Ethanol seems to be popular for an alternative fuel for cars. If you distilled the ethanol by cooling it and exceeding the saturation point, because it has a lower density than water (.789 grams/cubic cm), the ethanol it would float to the top. You could take the mixture below the freezing...
  38. Ivan Seeking

    Ethanol Deception - Is It Really Better Than Gasoline?

    I was just watching a review of ethanol energy on CNN. They report that Consumer Reports claims that cars using ethanol see no decrease in mileage or performance. Now I'm not sure what Consumers Reports claimed and a source wasn't cited, but the point of the story was to consider the...
  39. N

    Equilibrium (water and ethanol)

    Ethanol and water are completely miscible; that is, they dissolve in each other in all proportions a) When two substances are mixed, is randomness increased or decreased? b) Heat is liberated in the disolving process. Does the tendency toward minimum energy favour the separated pure...
  40. D

    Crops for Ethanol versus Solar Arrays

    There has been much talk in the U.S. about growing corn and switch grass for the production of ethanol. The purpose being to use ethanol as a fuel additive. Would it not be possible to produce more energy by putting solar arrays in place of these crops? It would seem that ethanol...
  41. R

    Transporting Ethanol by Pipeline

    Is there any reason why ethanol in bulk cannot be transported by a mixed commodity pipeline (i.e., one that also ships gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, etc.)?
  42. wasteofo2

    Ethanol for drinking, Ethanol for fuel.

    When Ethanol is talked about as a fuel, it's the same exact molecule in alcoholic beverages, right? If that's the case, what is it about Ethanol that makes it preferable as a fuel to other alcohols? Is it just that we already have the capacity to ferment ethanol from sugars easily, or is...
  43. B

    How Does Ethanol Impact Fuel Economy Compared to Gasoline?

    Homework Statement An automobile has a fuel economy of 25mi/gal when combusting gasoline. If the engine is modified to burn pure ethanol, but the engine effeciency stays the same, what is the expected fuel economy? If the ethanol powered engine is 10 percent more efficent than the gasoline...
  44. P

    Molarity of a solution of ethanol in water

    Calculate the molarity of a solution of ethanol in water,in which the mole fraction of ethanol is 0.040. Can anyone help me to solve this problem?:bugeye:
  45. D

    Comparing Ethanol and Hydrogen as Alternatives to Oil

    I was just wondering (with all the oil supposedly running out) how feasible is running our internal combusion engines on ethanol as apposed to say hydrogen? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each. Seeing as ethanol would require a massive increase in the amount of farmland for...
  46. D

    Ethanol Dissolving: Molecules Stay Intact?

    When ethanol dissolves, the individual molecules stay intact right? It doesn't dissolve like a hydrohalic acid in which the polar bond actually breaks?
  47. D

    Maximizing Ethanol Production in the School Lab

    We are trying to make ethanol by using corn meal, sugar , amalyse and water, added with yeast in our school. So far, we've tried 2 table spoons of each + water and all corn meal, no sugar, also all sugar, no corn meal. Right now, the 2 table spoons is winning, I think. I was wondering if...
  48. D

    Fuel Cells that Run off Ethanol or Sugar Possible?

    Is it possible to make fuel cells that run of ethanol or even sugar? :confused: Is it a good idea? Why/Why not?
  49. S

    Ethanol Explained: Benefits & Costs

    http://www.usnews.com/usnews/biztech/articles/060425/25ethanol_faq.htm?s_cid=rss:site1" There is some Good news and bad news Is this ture?
  50. S

    Ethanol Fuel from Corn Faulted as ‘Unsustainable Subsidized Food Burning’

    http://healthandenergy.com/ethanol.htm I thought it was soppsed to be cheaper:rolleyes: What ever happened to Hydorgen fuel cells powerd cars.
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