Influence of confinement on solvation of ethanol in water studied by Raman spectroscopy

Herewith we present the results of our studies on the effect of confinement on the solvation of ethyl alcohol in aqueous solutions using Raman spectroscopy of the O-H stretching band. Based on Gaussian-Lorentzian deconvolution of the O-H band Raman spectra we investigate the local structures created between water-water, water-alcohol, and alcohol-alcohol molecules, which are directly related to the solubility of the liquids. Comparison of the responses in bulk solutions and in solutions confined in the pores of the gelatin gel shows that for high ethanol concentrations solubility significantly increases with decrease of the pore sizes. (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3520435]