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There are two factors which determine the vapor pressure of ethanol (because what makes ethanol volatile is that it was a high vapor pressure).
What makes the vapor pressure of ethanol quite high is that it is a small molecule with a low molecular weight. In fact, if you look at other molecules with similar size and weight, many of them are gases at room temperature. The molecular weight of ethanol (C2H5OH) is approximately 46 grams/mole. Carbon dioxide (CO2) has a molecular weight of 44 grams/mole, but it is a gas. Butane, C4H6 has a molecular weight of 54 g/mol and is a gas. Chlorine (Cl2) is a gas with molecular weight of 71 g/mol! So you might predict that ethanol should be a gas at room temperature from this.
However, ethanol is a liquid. The reason it is a liquid is because it can hydrogen bond. The alcohol group, -OH, in the molecule has both a hydrogen bonded to an oxygen atom, which is allows for hydrogen bonding. Hydrogen bonding is a very strong intermolecular force, and this is what makes ethanol a liquid (and water too, which has a molecular weight of only 18 g/mol -- water is not volatile because it has two -OH groups, and so can hydrogen bond much better than ethanol can).
So ethanol is volatile because it is a small and light molecule, but it is not as volatile as you might otherwise expect due to hydrogen bonding.
What else can I help you with?
Is ethylamine more volatile than methylamine?
Ethylamine is more volatile than methylamine.
Is ethanol more volatile than acetone?
Acetone is more volatile than ethanol.
Are cyclic ethers more nucleophilic than free alcohols?
Yes, cyclic ethers are typically more nucleophilic than free alcohols due to the presence of the ring strain which increases the electrophilic character of the oxygen atom in the ring. This makes cyclic ethers more reactive towards electrophiles compared to free alcohols.
Are alcohols more reactive than ethers?
No, ethers are generally less reactive than alcohols. Alcohols have a hydroxyl group (-OH) that can participate in various chemical reactions such as oxidation, dehydration, and nucleophilic substitution. Ethers, on the other hand, lack such a reactive functional group and are generally more inert.
Alcohol is more volatile than water because?
Alcohol has weaker intermolecular forces compared to water, allowing it to evaporate more easily at lower temperatures. This means that alcohol molecules escape from the liquid phase more readily, resulting in its higher volatility than water.
Which is more volatile alcohols or organic acids?
Alcohols are typically more volatile than organic acids because alcohols have lower molecular weights and fewer functional groups that contribute to volatility. Organic acids have additional functional groups, such as carboxylic acid groups, that tend to reduce their volatility compared to alcohols.
Why is methanol rather than ethanol preferred for transesterification in the refining of soybean oil to make biodiesel?
May be because it gives more volatile esters, easy to separate or concentrate or strip off.
Is ethylamine more volatile than methylamine?
Ethylamine is more volatile than methylamine.
Is ethanol more volatile than acetone?
Acetone is more volatile than ethanol.
Why do secondary and primary alcohol prove to be more reactive than tertiary alcohols?
Primary and secondary alcohols are more reactive than tertiary alcohols due to their structure, which allows for easier protonation and subsequent reaction with electrophiles. Primary and secondary alcohols have fewer steric hindrances compared to tertiary alcohols, making it easier for nucleophiles to approach and react with the hydroxyl group. Additionally, the carbon in tertiary alcohols is more stable and less likely to participate in reactions, such as dehydration or oxidation, compared to the more reactive primary and secondary alcohols.
Is CBr4 more volatile than CCl4?
ch4 is the most volatile
Are cyclic ethers more nucleophilic than free alcohols?
Yes, cyclic ethers are typically more nucleophilic than free alcohols due to the presence of the ring strain which increases the electrophilic character of the oxygen atom in the ring. This makes cyclic ethers more reactive towards electrophiles compared to free alcohols.
Why aromatic alcohols are more acidic than aliphatic alcohols?
aromatic alcohols undergo resonance which stabilizes the conjugate base, in aliphatic alcohols +I effect of alkyl group increase the -ve charge in the conjugate base thus make it unstable
Which is more volatile acetic acid or water?
Alcohols have strong hydrogen bonding between each other, which makes it harder to vaporize. Acetone,however, has only weak Van der Waal's forces(London forces). This makes acetone easier to evaporate.
Which are least reactive eiter ethers or esters?
Ethers are generally less reactive than esters. This is due to the lack of a reactive functional group in ethers, which mainly consist of an oxygen atom bonded to two alkyl or aryl groups. In contrast, esters contain a carbonyl group (C=O) that makes them more susceptible to nucleophilic attack and hydrolysis. Thus, esters are typically more reactive than ethers.
Is petrol more volatile than diesel?
yes
Are alcohols more reactive than ethers?
No, ethers are generally less reactive than alcohols. Alcohols have a hydroxyl group (-OH) that can participate in various chemical reactions such as oxidation, dehydration, and nucleophilic substitution. Ethers, on the other hand, lack such a reactive functional group and are generally more inert.
