There is now a reaction between ethanol and acetic acid. Ethanol, with a clear color and a cool taste, is a common alcohol. Acetic acid, with an acidic and irritating taste, belongs to carboxylic acids and the like.

The two meet, and under suitable conditions, a chemical reaction can take place. During the reaction, the hydrogen of the hydroxyl group in ethanol combines with the hydroxyl group of the carboxyl group in acetic acid to form a water molecule and escape. The ethoxy group of the rest of the ethanol is connected to the acetyl group of acetic acid to form ethyl acetate.

This reaction is reversible. If you want to make it proceed in the direction of forming ethyl acetate, you often need to add a catalyst, such as concentrated sulfuric acid. Concentrated sulfuric acid can not only speed up the reaction rate, but also absorb water, causing the balance to shift to the right. And when the reaction, it is necessary to control the temperature moderately and heat it to improve the reaction rate. However, if the temperature is too high, it will also cause side reactions, which will affect the yield of ethyl acetate.

Looking at the reaction between ethanol and acetic acid, the chemical change is wonderful, which shows that it also has important applications in various fields such as chemical industry.