Date: Tue, 31 Dec 2002 13:53:23 -0500 From: Chuck Swiger <cswiger@mac.com> To: freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Water Damage Message-ID: <3E11E7A3.5070404@mac.com> References: <20021230110818.A91089-100000@cactus.fi.uba.ar> <3E11070B.5000306@jcdurham.com>
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Jim Durham wrote: [ ... ] > That's an excellent idea because the alcohol will "absorb" the water (I > believe the correct term is that water is "misable" in alcohol), so when > the alcohol evaporates it takes the water with it. Yes, water and alcohol are misable in any proportions, but there's slightly more to it than that. You cannot get 100% pure alcohol via distillation-- this is why isopropyl rubbing alcohol goes up to 91% alcohol, and why ethanol like grain only goes up to 195 proof (~98%). [ If you try to concentrate the alcohol past that point, the alcohol will absorb water vapor right out of the air, just like the silica gel packets used in shipping do. Called "azeotropic", which to most people simply means that chemists use funny words. ] -Chuck To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-questions" in the body of the message
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