Tris(2-Ethylhexyl) trimellitate (TOTM) a potential reference fluid for high viscosity. Part II: Density measurements at temperatures from (293 to 373) K and pressures up to 68 MPa

Abstract

In Part I of the present work we describe the viscosity measurements performed on tris(2-ethylhexyl) trimellitate or 1,2,4-benzenetricarboxylic acid, tris(2-ethylhexyl) ester (TOTM) up to 65MPa and at six temperatures from (303 to 373)K, using a new vibrating-wire instrument. The main aim is to contribute to the proposal of that liquid as a potential reference fluid for high viscosity, high pressure and high temperature. The present Part II is dedicated to report the density measurements of TOTM necessary, not only to compute the viscosity data presented in Part I, but also as complementary data for the mentioned proposal. The present density measurements were obtained using a vibrating U-tube densimeter, model DMA HP, using model DMA5000 as a reading unit, both instruments from Anton Paar GmbH. The measurements were performed along five isotherms from (293 to 373)K and at eleven different pressures up to 68MPa. As far as the authors are aware, the viscosity and density results are the first, above atmospheric pressure, to be published for TOTM. Due to TOTM’s high viscosity, its density data were corrected for the viscosity effect on the U-tube density measurements. This effect was estimated using two Newtonian viscosity standard liquids, 20 AW and 200 GW. The density data were correlated with temperature and pressure using a modified Tait equation. The expanded uncertainty of the present density results is estimated as ±0.2% at a 95% confidence level. Those results were correlated with temperature and pressure by a modified Tait equation, with deviations within ±0.25%. Furthermore, the isothermal compressibility, κT, and the isobaric thermal expansivity, αp, were obtained by derivation of the modified Tait equation used for correlating the density data. The corresponding uncertainties, at a 95% confidence level, are estimated to be less than ±1.5% and ±1.2%, respectively. No isobaric thermal expansivity and isothermal compressibility for TOTM were found in the literature.