Hi
Could someone please tell me the difference between denatured or undenatured ethanol? Does it make a difference to pracs? I usually purchase denatured but it is not in stock atm at my preferred supplier.
thanks
Kathryn
ethanol - denatured or undenatured?
- Labbie
- Posts: 3243
- Joined: 28 Nov 2006, 10:00
- Job Title: Retired
- Suburb: At Home
- State/Location: NSW
Re: ethanol - denatured or undenatured?
Absolute (99-100%) ethanol
Some procedures that are sensitive to the presence of water require absolute ethanol. A common method to produce ethanol with a higher concentration than 95% is to use additives that disrupt the azeotrope composition and allow further distillation. For this reason, absolute ethanol sometimes contains trace amounts of these additives (such as benzene). Absolute ethanol is hygroscopic (it attracts water), so don’t expect it to remain ‘100%’ ethanol for long if it’s left uncapped.
3) Denatured ethanol
Denatured ethanol (either 95% or absolute) contains additives (such as methanol and isopropanol) that render it unsafe to drink, and therefore exempt from certain beverage taxes. This makes it cheaper than pure ethanol.
Some procedures that are sensitive to the presence of water require absolute ethanol. A common method to produce ethanol with a higher concentration than 95% is to use additives that disrupt the azeotrope composition and allow further distillation. For this reason, absolute ethanol sometimes contains trace amounts of these additives (such as benzene). Absolute ethanol is hygroscopic (it attracts water), so don’t expect it to remain ‘100%’ ethanol for long if it’s left uncapped.
3) Denatured ethanol
Denatured ethanol (either 95% or absolute) contains additives (such as methanol and isopropanol) that render it unsafe to drink, and therefore exempt from certain beverage taxes. This makes it cheaper than pure ethanol.
Regards Labbie
Lab Manager/Lab Tech, mind reading etc etc
Now retired
Lab Manager/Lab Tech, mind reading etc etc
Now retired