Manifestation of hydrogen bonds of aqueous ethanol solutions in the Raman scattering spectra

Spectra of Raman scattering of light by aqueous ethanol solutions in the range of concentrations from pure water to 96 % alcohol are studied. For water, 25 %, and 40 % solutions of ethanol in water, as well as for 96 % alcohol the Raman spectra are measured at temperatures from the freezing point to nearly the boiling point. The changes in the shape of the stretching OH band are interpreted in terms of strengthening or weakening of hydrogen bonds between the molecules in the solution. The strongest hydrogen bonding of hydroxyl groups is observed at the ethanol content from 20 to 25 volume percent, which is explained by formation of ethanol hydrates of a definite type at the mentioned concentrations of alcohol. This is confirmed by means of the method of multivariate curve resolution, used to analyse the Raman spectra of aqueous ethanol solutions. With growing temperature the weakening of hydrogen bonding occurs in all studied systems, which consists in reducing the number of OH groups, linked by strong hydrogen bonds.