2-Ethyl-1-butanol (IUPAC name: 2-ethylbutan-1-ol) is an organicchemical compound. It can be used to facilitate the separation of ethanol from water, which forms an azeotrope that otherwise limits the maximum ethanol concentration.[2]
The branching in 2-ethyl-1-butanol makes it harder to crystallize due to packing disruption, which results in a very low freezing point. Esters of 2-ethyl-1-butanol are similarly effected and it therefore finds application as a feedstock in the production of plasticizers and lubricants, where its presence helps reduce viscosity and lower freezing points.
^Lide, David R. (1998), Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (87 ed.), Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press, pp. 3–262, 8–106, 15–20, ISBN978-0-8493-0594-8
^Roddy, James W. (1981). "Distribution of ethanol-water mixtures to organic liquids". Ind. Eng. Chem. Proc. Des. Dev. 20 (1): 104–108. doi:10.1021/i200012a016.