Ethanol

04 Carbon and its compound

Ethanol is a colourless liquid at room temperature having a pleasant smell and a burning taste.
Ethanol is a volatile liquid having a low boiling point of (351 K). The melting point of ethanol is 156K
It is lighter than water; Ethanol mixes with water in any proportion.
Ethanol containing 5 per cent water is called rectified spirit. It is a neutral compound.

COMBUSTION:

Ethanol is a highly inflammable liquid.
Ethanol burns readily in air to form carbon dioxide and water vapour, and releasing a lot of heat and light:

The burning of ethanol gives a clear flame producing a lot of heat. Hence, the use of ethanol as fuel.
Some countries add ethanol to petrol to use as a fuel in cars. This makes ethanol an additive in petrol.
Sugarcane crop is the source of large-scale production of ethanol.
Cane sugar present in molasses ferments (breakdown by enzymes) to produce ethanol.

Heating of ethanol with alkaline potassium permanganate solution (or acidified potassium dichromate solution) results in oxidizing ethanoic acid:

When ethanol is heated with excess of concentrated sulphuric acid at 170^oC (443 K), it gets dehydrated to form ethane (which is an unsaturated hydrocarbon):

Ethanol reacts with ethanoic acid in the presence of a few drops of concentrated sulphuric acid to form a sweet smelling ester, ethyl ethanoate:

The reaction in which a carboxylic acid combines with an alcohol to form an ester is called esterification.

When ethanol is heated at 443 K in presence of excess conc. sulphuric acid alkene is obtained.

{CH}_{3} {CH}_{2} OH \overset{conc . H_{2} {SO}_{4}}{\to} {CH}_{2} = {CH}_{2} + H_{2} O

Ethyl alcohol Ethene water

It is used in the manufacture of paints, varnishes, lacquers, medicines, perfumes, dyes, soaps and synthetic rubber.
It is used as a solvent. Many organic compounds which are insoluble in water are soluble in ethyl alcohol.
Being a good solvent, ethyl alcohol (ethanol) is used in medicines such as tincture iodine, cough syrups and many tonics.
It is used as a fuel in cars along with petrol. It is also used as a fuel in spirit lamps.
It is used in alcoholic drinks (beverages) like whisky, wine, beer and other liquors.
Whisky contains about 35% of ethyl alcohol, wine contains 10% to 20% of ethyl alcohol, and beer contains about 6% of ethyl alcohol.
It 4 is used as an antiseptic to sterilize wounds and syrings in hospitals and dispensaries.

Alcohol slows down the activity of the nervous system and the brain resulting in impairment of decision making of the individual.
The person’s ‘reaction’ becomes slow. Hence, a person driving a car under the influence of alcohol cannot judge resulting in increased road accidents .
Drinking alcohol heavily leads to staggered movement, slurred speech (unclear speech), Blurred vision, dizziness, and vomiting.
Drinking of large quantities of alcohol makes a man unconscious. He might even die.
Addiction of alcohol might result in addiction.
Addiction of alcohol over a long period of time can damage the stomach, liver, heart and even brain.
The liver disease known as ‘cirrhosis’ caused by alcohol can lead to death
The drinking of adulterated alcohol containing methyl alcohol (methanol), causes severe poisoning leading to blindness and even death. .
So, to prevent the misuse of ethanol in industries, methanol is added which makes it unfit for drinking and the process is called denaturing.