Insights into the Methyl Lactate and C4–C7 Alkanol Interactions from Densities, Viscosities, and CPA Modeling

The investigation carried out in this study focused on exploring the hydrogen bonding structure of liquid solutions of methyl lactate and 1-alkanols include 1-butanol, 1-pentanol, 1-hexanol, and 1-heptanol. To analyze the interactions between the molecules, the researcher utilized the cubic-plus-association (CPA) model, which takes into account both the physical and association interactions. The maximum deviation observed in the density of the liquid solutions of methyl lactate with 1-heptanol was 0.28%, indicating the effectiveness of the CPA model in accurately modeling the density. Additionally, the researchers calculated the excess molar volumes and deviation in viscosity for the studied liquid mixtures. The analysis of these measurements revealed that the solutions of methyl lactate with 1-alkanols exhibited positive excess molar volumes across the entire concentration range. On the other hand, negative viscosity deviations were observed for the mentioned alkanols. These findings suggest that there are weak intermolecular associations within the liquid solutions, with weaker bond strength observed in higher alkanols.