Excess heat capacities and orientational order in systems containing hexadecane isomers of different molecular structure

Abstract

Using the Picker flow microcalorimeter, excess heat capacities have been obtained at 25°C throughout the concentration range for 2,2-dimethylbutane,n-hexane, and cyclohexane each mixed with a series of hexadecane isomers of increasing degrees of orientational order, as determined by depolarized Rayleigh scattering. The isomers are 2,2,4,4,6,8,8-heptamethylnonane, 6-, 4-, and 2-methylpentadecane, andn-hexadecane. Thec ^E _p values are negative, increasing rapidly in magnitude with increase of orientational order, and are not predicted by the Prigogine—Flory theory which neglects order. Values ofc ^E _p are obtained at 10, 25, and 55°C for cyclohexane +6-, 4-, and 2-methylpentadecane which with other literature data lead to the temperature dependence of the thermodynamic excess functions for cyclohexane solutions of the five C₁₆ isomers. The excess enthalpy and entropy vary with the C₁₆ isomer and with temperature, but the corresponding variation of the excess free energy is small, indicating a high degree of enthalpy-entropy compensation. This is consistent with a rapid decrease with temperature of orientational order in the C₁₆ isomers.