The polarity of ethyl acetate and ethanol is related to its molecular structure and charge distribution, and is crucial in many fields. The polarity of ethyl acetate and ethanol can reveal the difference in their characteristics.

For ethanol, its molecule contains hydroxyl (-OH). The oxygen atom in this functional group is very electronegative, causing the electron cloud to be biased towards oxygen, making the hydrogen-oxygen bond significantly polar. And the hydroxyl group can participate in the formation of hydrogen bonds and increase the intermolecular force. The polarity of ethanol makes it have good solubility in water, and its hydroxyl group can form hydrogen bonds with the hydrogen atom of the water molecule, so it dissolves with water.

In contrast, the structure of ethyl acetate is CH
COOCH < CH
. Although the molecule also contains polar bonds, such as carbon-oxygen double bonds (C = O) and carbon-oxygen single bonds (C-O), overall, its polarity is weaker than that of ethanol. The interaction between the carbonyl group (C = O) of ethyl acetate and the ethoxy group (-OCH 2O CH) causes the molecular charge distribution to be more uniform than that of ethanol, reducing the degree of polarity. Therefore, the solubility of ethyl acetate in water is inferior to that of ethanol, and it is only slightly soluble in water. It is more soluble with non-polar or weakly polar organic solvents.

To sum up, the polarity of ethanol is stronger than that of ethyl acetate. The hydroxyl group of ethanol gives it higher polarity and hydrogen bond formation ability, while the molecular structure of ethyl acetate makes its polarity weaker. The difference in polarity between the two has an important impact on chemical experiments, industrial production, material separation and purification, etc., and practitioners cannot ignore it.