Chemical Demonstration

Revision 1.0

Solubility of Alcohols
What Is Happening
A few milliliters of each of the following Alcohols is added to about 30mL of Water.

Name Chemical Formula # Carbon Atoms

Methanol (Wood Alcohol) CH3OH 1

Ethanol (Grain Alcohol) CH3CH2OH 2
Propanol CH3CH2CH2OH 3
Butanol CH3CH2CH2CH2OH 4
Pentanol CH3CH2CH2CH2CH2OH 5

By definition, an Alcohol is an organic compound containing a –OH grouping. Each of the

above are referred to as n-Alcohols, or Normal Alcohols, as the –OH group occurs at the end of
the carbon chain.

Background

When Methanol (CH3OH) is added to Water, the dominant intermolecular force acting between
the molecules is H-Bonding.

By the general rule of Like-Dissolves-Like, these two compounds will dissolve in each other as
each is capable of H-Bonding.

However, as the number of Carbon atoms in the molecule increases, the dominant intermolecular
force between the Alcohol and Water molecules becomes an LDF interaction.
Again, by the general rule, these compounds will not dissolve in each other. Hence, as the
number of Carbon atoms in the chain increase, the less soluble will be the Alcohol in Water. We
can see this in the measured solubilities listed below:

Alcohol Solubility in Water [g/100mL water]

Methanol Infinite
Ethanol Infinite
Propanol Infinite
Butanol 8.0
Pentanol 2.2
Hexanol 0.7