Azeotroopin

Azeotroopin is a hypothetical chemical compound used in theoretical discussions of azeotropy in liquid mixtures. It is not known to exist in real systems, but it serves as a model substance to illustrate how volatile components can form azeotropes and resist simple distillation.

In the imagined model, azeotroopin is a small, polar organic molecule containing an electronegative atom capable of hydrogen bonding. It is assigned a moderate vapor pressure at ambient conditions and is liquid at room temperature in the hypothetical state. When mixed with common solvents such as water, ethanol, or acetone, azeotroopin can engage in specific intermolecular interactions that influence the activity of components, producing a true constant-boiling azeotrope under certain compositions. The azeotrope has a fixed liquid and vapor composition at a given temperature, so simple distillation cannot separate it into pure constituents beyond that point.

Because azeotroopin is a fictitious construct, there are no real synthesis routes, safety data, or natural sources. It is used primarily in textbooks and simulations to demonstrate Raoult's law deviations, the concept of activity coefficients, and the design of separation processes such as azeotropic and extractive distillation.

In educational contexts, the term helps clarify the limitations of distillation and the role of azeotropy in mixture separation. See also: Azeotrope, Distillation, Raoult's law, Activity coefficient.