Study of Molecular Interactions in MCH and 1-Alkanol Mixtures Regarding the Soret Effect

In this research, we have investigated the dominant intermolecular forces governing the behavior of binary systems composed of methylcyclohexane (MCH) and n-alkanols (ranging from 1-pentanol to 1-decanol) within the temperature range of 293.15 K to 323.15 K. The properties under consideration include the mutual and thermal diffusion coefficient, separation ratio, and Soret coefficients. The Soret coefficient for MCH was determined to be positive, indicating an enrichment of this molecule in the colder regions of the liquid mixture. Furthermore, the thermal diffusion coefficients for the binary solutions were found to be positive, exhibiting a decreasing trend with increasing temperature. Interestingly, the separation ratio parameter for all the aforementioned solutions showed a positive correlation with the carbon atom content of the alkanols, suggesting that longer alkyl chains lead to higher values of the separation ratio. These findings point to the reinforcement of molecular forces with increasing alcohol chain length. In light of these results, our study highlights the significant impact of molecular structure on intermolecular forces in binary mixtures, specifically emphasizing the role of alkyl chain length in influencing their thermal behavior. Moreover, we discuss the advantages of our new method in comparison to previous approaches for calculating the thermal properties of such mixtures. The novel methodology presented here holds promise for furthering our understanding and applications in the field of chemistry.