General Description
Solid. Insoluble in water. Used in organic synthesis, calibration, and temperature sensing equipment.
Reactivity Profile
Saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons, such as N-DOCOSANE(629-97-0), may be incompatible with strong oxidizing agents like nitric acid. Charring of the hydrocarbon may occur followed by ignition of unreacted hydrocarbon and other nearby combustibles. In other settings, aliphatic saturated hydrocarbons are mostly unreactive. They are not affected by aqueous solutions of acids, alkalis, most oxidizing agents, and most reducing agents. When heated sufficiently or when ignited in the presence of air, oxygen or strong oxidizing agents, they burn exothermically to produce carbon dioxide and water.
Air & Water Reactions
Insoluble in water.
Chemical Properties
colourless crystalline solid
Uses
It is employed as a perfuming agent in cosmetics industry. It is also used in organic synthesis, calibration, and temperature sensing equipment. Docosane is used to investigate commercially available waxes in the form of thin disc samples as possible diffraction intensity standards for macromolecular crystallography synchrotron beamlines.
Application
Docosane (C22H46) is a long-chain alkane that can be used as an organic phase-change material for thermal energy storage. Pure docosane has a high latent heat of 256.1 J/g, but its thermal conductivity is relatively low, at only approximately 0.2–0.3 W/(m·K), which limits the rate of heat exchange during the thermal storage process. When combined with sponge-like graphene, both its latent heat (262.8 J/g or 262.2 J/g) and thermal conductivity (0.59 W/(m·K)) are enhanced. This composite material can be utilised in solar thermal energy storage systems as a phase-change thermal storage medium with high energy density and rapid thermal response[1].
Definition
ChEBI: Docosane is a straight-chain alkane with 22 carbon atoms. It has a role as a plant metabolite.
Purification Methods
Crystallise docosane from EtOH or ether. [Beilstein 1 IV 572.]
References
[1] J.F. Li. (2014). Simultaneous enhancement of latent heat and thermal conductivity of docosane-based phase change material in the presence of spongy graphene. Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells, 128, Pages 48-51. https://doi.org/
10.1016/j.solmat.2014.05.018
