CRITICAL-TEMPERATURES AND DENSITIES OF N-ALKANONES

Critical temperatures and densities of 24 n-alkanones with 10-14 carbo n atoms have been measured. These alkanones were found to be thermally unstable at temperatures below their critical temperature, whereas in an earlier publication, it was reported that alkanones with fewer tha n 10 carbon atoms were thermally stable up to their critical temperatu res. The data show smooth behavior of the critical temperatures and de nsities with carbon number for these substances. The critical temperat ures of the isomeric n-alkanones increase with increasing carbon numbe r, but the critical densities decrease as the carbon number increases. Both properties approach those of the corresponding n-alkane as the c arbon number increases. In addition, the critical temperatures of the n-alkanones decrease as the carbonyl group is located further toward t he center of the carbon chain, while the critical densities remain vir tually constant. New correlations are reported for the critical temper ature and density of members of the n-alkanone series.