Report on the Vapor Lock and Freezing Point Characteristics of Methyl Alcohol-Ethyl Alcohol-Water De-icing Fluids
Abstract
In connection with the investigation of the possibility of employing various new mixtures of methyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol and water as aviation series of known compositions were determined, up to a total alcohol concentration of sixty percent by volume. It is possible from these data to predict the freezing point of a solution with any proportion of the three compounds. It was also desired to know whether a proposed standard de-icing solution, consisting of 50 percent water and 50 percent of a mixture of 5 parts methyl alcohol in 100 parts of 95 percent ethyl alcohol, would cause vapor lock in the feed lines below an altitude of 40,000 feet. By measurements of vapor pressure at different temperatures and by comparison with aviation gasoline, the vapor lock characteristics of which are known, it was judged that in a well designed system the likelihood of trouble from vapor lock is very small, whether caused by vaporization of the liquid itself or by dissolved gases which have been removed from solution by low external pressures.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 31, 1944
- Accession Number
- AD1185041
Entities
People
- G. S. Gordon
- P. Borgstrom
- T. P. May
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory