Solubilities of Stearic Acid in Organic Solvents and in Azeotropic Solvent Mixtures.

The solubility of stearic acid was measured in ethanol, 2-propanol, heptane, hexane, acetone, and trichloroethylene and in the azeotropic mixtures of the solvents (ethanol−heptane; hexane−ethanol; ethanol−trichloroethylene; acetone−heptane; heptane−2-propanol; acetone−hexane; hexane−2-propanol; 2-propanol−trichloroethylene), by the phase disappearance method, from (290 to 325) K. The stearic acid−pure solvent experimental data were correlated with the Van Laar, Wilson, NRTL, and UNIQUAC equations and the solubility of stearic acid in azeotropic mixtures with the NIBS/Redlich−Kister equation. The UNIFAC solubility prediction improved when the correction for the existence of stearic acid dimers was applied except for systems with trichloroethylene and 2-propanol. The solubility of stearic acid increased in azeotropic mixtures regarding pure solvents except for the heptane−acetone and hexane−acetone mixtures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]