Fact-checked by Grok 2 weeks ago

Cosolvent

A cosolvent is an additional solvent, typically an organic compound miscible with water, that is added to a primary solvent—most often water—to enhance the solubility of poorly soluble substances, such as drugs or hydrophobic compounds, by altering the solvent's polarity and dielectric properties.^[1] In pharmaceutical formulations, cosolvents play a crucial role in improving the aqueous solubility of nonpolar or hydrophobic active pharmaceutical ingredients, enabling their delivery in liquid dosage forms like injectables, oral solutions, and topical preparations.^[2] Common examples include ethanol, propylene glycol, glycerol, and polyethylene glycols, which are selected for their compatibility, low toxicity, and ability to reduce surface tension and polarity in mixed solvent systems.^[3] These additives must be pharmacologically inert and safe for patient use, with their concentrations carefully controlled to avoid precipitation or instability during storage or administration.^[1] Beyond pharmaceuticals, cosolvents influence biochemical processes by modulating hydrophobic interactions, protein folding, and stability in aqueous environments. For instance, denaturants like urea disrupt water's hydrogen-bonding network to increase protein flexibility and solubility, while stabilizing osmolytes such as trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) reinforce water structure to protect native protein conformations against denaturation. This dual role makes cosolvents essential in biochemical research and bioprocessing, where they help mimic cellular conditions or optimize enzyme activity. In environmental chemistry, cosolvents are employed to increase the aqueous solubility of hydrophobic organic contaminants, facilitating their extraction, transport, or remediation from soil and groundwater.^[4] By adding small amounts of organic solvents like methanol or acetone to water, the solubility of pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons or pesticides can rise dramatically—often by orders of magnitude—enhancing biodegradation or removal efficiency in contaminated sites.^[5] However, their use requires balancing efficacy with potential ecological risks, as excessive cosolvent addition may mobilize toxins unintendedly.

Basic Concepts

Definition and Types

A cosolvent is defined as a secondary solvent added in small quantities to a primary solvent, typically water, to improve the solubility of poorly water-soluble solutes, such as non-polar or hydrophobic compounds. This addition modifies the solvent environment, often by reducing the overall polarity of the mixture, thereby facilitating dissolution without forming separate phases. In pharmaceutical and chemical contexts, cosolvents are selected for their compatibility and ability to create homogeneous solutions that enhance solute dispersion.^[6]^[1] Cosolvents are primarily classified as organic or inorganic, with organic types dominating applications due to their miscibility with aqueous systems. Common organic cosolvents include ethanol, propylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, and glycerol. Inorganic cosolvents, such as oxyhalides (e.g., sulfuryl chloride) used in electrolyte solutions, are rarer and applied in niche areas like battery technologies. Further classification considers miscibility and polarity: fully miscible cosolvents integrate seamlessly with the primary solvent, while partially miscible ones may require careful proportioning to avoid phase separation. Polarity-based categories distinguish polar cosolvents, exemplified by glycerol, which supports hydrogen bonding in aqueous mixtures, from less polar or aprotic options like acetone, which effectively solubilize non-polar solutes by altering dielectric properties.^[3]^[7]^[8] Representative examples illustrate cosolvent utility in practice. Ethanol-water mixtures serve as a staple in pharmaceutical formulations, where ethanol acts as the cosolvent to boost the solubility of lipophilic drugs like steroids or antibiotics. Similarly, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) functions as a cosolvent in biological assays, enabling the dissolution of hydrophobic compounds for cell-based studies while maintaining physiological compatibility at low concentrations.^[8]^[9]

Thermodynamic Principles

Cosolvents enhance the solubility of hydrophobic solutes primarily by reducing the polarity of the aqueous solvent mixture, which lowers the free energy of solvation through preferential solvation mechanisms. In water-rich cosolvent systems, the cosolvent molecules accumulate around the hydrophobic solute, disrupting the structured water network and weakening the hydrophobic effect that otherwise limits solubility. This preferential interaction, quantified via Kirkwood-Buff theory, results in a more favorable solvation environment, as the cosolvent shields nonpolar solute regions from unfavorable water contacts.^[10]^[11]^[12] A foundational thermodynamic description of cosolvent effects is provided by the log-linear solubility model, which approximates the solubility in a binary mixture as a weighted average of the solubilities in the pure solvents:

\log(S_m) = x_1 \log(S_1) + x_2 \log(S_2)

where S_m is the solubility in the mixture, x_1 and x_2 are the mole fractions of the primary solvent and cosolvent (with x_1 + x_2 = 1), and S_1 and S_2 are the solubilities in the pure primary solvent and cosolvent, respectively. This model arises from the assumption of ideal mixing in the solid phase and linear variation in the logarithm of the activity coefficient with composition, capturing the exponential increase in solubility with cosolvent addition for many nonpolar drugs. Deviations occur in nonideal systems due to specific interactions, but the model effectively predicts trends for cosolvents like ethanol or propylene glycol in aqueous mixtures.^[13]^[3] Key thermodynamic concepts underpinning cosolvent action include activity coefficients, which deviate from ideality in polar mixtures and influence the chemical potential of the solute; partition coefficients, such as \log K_{ow}, that correlate solute hydrophobicity with cosolvent efficacy; and the disruption of hydrogen bonding in aqueous systems. Cosolvents like alcohols interrupt water's tetrahedral hydrogen-bond network, reducing the entropic penalty of hydrophobic hydration and favoring solute solvation, as evidenced by positive dissolution entropies in intermediate compositions. These effects manifest in Gibbs free energy changes, where \Delta G_{solv} decreases for hydrophobic solutes as cosolvent fraction increases up to a maximum solubility point.^[14]^[15]^[16] The effectiveness of cosolvents depends on concentration thresholds, typically 10-50% v/v, beyond which toxicity or phase separation may limit utility, and on temperature, which generally enhances solubility through endothermic dissolution processes. At higher temperatures, the increased kinetic energy further weakens solvent structuring, amplifying cosolvent-induced polarity reduction and yielding more negative \Delta G values, though the exact dependence varies with solute-cosolvent interactions.^[17]

Pharmaceutical Applications

Drug Formulation

Cosolvents play a critical role in pharmaceutical formulations by enhancing the solubility of poorly water-soluble active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), thereby improving drug bioavailability and enabling effective delivery in both oral and injectable products.^[18] For instance, propylene glycol is commonly employed as a cosolvent in oral suspensions to dissolve APIs with low aqueous solubility, such as cefaclor, where a water:propylene glycol blend (20:80) maximizes drug dissolution while maintaining formulation stability.^[19] This approach leverages the cosolvent's ability to reduce the solvent polarity and surface tension, facilitating greater API incorporation without compromising the suspension's pourability or palatability.^[20] Selection of cosolvents in drug formulations involves careful consideration of toxicity profiles, emulsion stability, and adherence to regulatory guidelines to ensure patient safety, particularly in vulnerable populations. Ethanol, while effective for solubility enhancement, is often limited or avoided in pediatric formulations due to its potential neurotoxic effects and risk of elevating blood alcohol levels, with studies showing concentrations exceeding 0.5% in some products leading to unsafe exposures in children under 6 years.^[21] Propylene glycol selection must also account for stability in emulsions, where it can influence droplet size and prevent phase separation, though high concentrations may reduce long-term emulsion integrity at elevated temperatures.^[22] The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provides guidance through its Inactive Ingredient Database (IID), which lists the highest concentrations of excipients reported in approved drug products, such as propylene glycol up to approximately 98% (v/v) in some oral solutions and suspensions, and ethanol up to 10% (v/v) in over-the-counter (OTC) oral formulations for adults (with OTC limits of 0.5% for children under 6 years, 5% for ages 6-12 years, and 10% for ages over 12 years).^[23]^[24] For prescription products, concentrations should be justified for safety, with recommendations to minimize ethanol and propylene glycol in pediatrics based on age and body weight to mitigate toxicity risks.^[25] In practical case studies, polyethylene glycol 400 (PEG-400) serves as a cosolvent in tablet formulations to enhance API solubility and act as a plasticizer in coatings, improving film flexibility and drug release profiles for poorly soluble compounds like febuxostat.^[26] For injectable formulations, cosolvent mixtures are exemplified by the paclitaxel product Taxol, which uses a 50:50 (v/v) blend of ethanol and Cremophor EL to solubilize the hydrophobic API, enabling intravenous administration despite its inherent insolubility.^[27] These strategies draw briefly from thermodynamic principles where cosolvents increase solubility by altering the solvent's dielectric constant and preferential solvation of the API.^[28] The advantages of cosolvents include significantly improved dissolution rates and bioavailability for Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS) Class II drugs, as seen in tenoxicam formulations where cosolvent addition boosted solubility over 10-fold without requiring complex processing.^[29] However, limitations persist, such as potential local irritation from surfactants like Cremophor EL in injectables and the risk of API precipitation upon dilution in aqueous environments, which can reduce efficacy and cause vascular issues during infusion.^[30] These challenges necessitate balanced formulation design to optimize therapeutic outcomes while minimizing adverse effects.^[31]

Synthesis Processes

Cosolvents play a crucial role in organic synthesis for pharmaceuticals by enhancing the solubility of poorly water-soluble reactants in aqueous-organic hybrid media, thereby facilitating greener reaction routes that reduce reliance on purely organic solvents. For instance, dimethylformamide (DMF) or tetrahydrofuran (THF) is often added to water or ethanol to dissolve hydrophobic reagents, enabling reactions under milder conditions and minimizing environmental impact compared to traditional organic solvent systems.^[32]^[33] This approach aligns with sustainable synthesis principles, as it leverages water as the primary medium while using cosolvents sparingly to solubilize key components. In specific techniques like peptide synthesis, cosolvents are employed to overcome solubility barriers and shift reaction equilibria. During enzymatic peptide bond formation, organic cosolvents such as DMF, methanol, or dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) added to aqueous buffers promote synthesis by altering the thermodynamic favorability, achieving yields up to 97% for dipeptides like Ac-Phe-Ala-NH₂.^[34]^[35] Similarly, in Boc protection strategies for solid-phase peptide synthesis, cosolvents like acetonitrile or ethanol are screened and incorporated into aqueous systems to ensure efficient α-amino group protection without compromising resin swelling or coupling efficiency.^[36] For nucleophilic substitution reactions, where reactant insolubility often limits yields, cosolvents such as acetonitrile in water enable the reaction of alkyl halides with nucleophiles by improving miscibility and reaction homogeneity, as seen in the substitution of activated aryl systems.^[37] The impact of cosolvents on reaction kinetics is primarily mediated through changes in the medium's dielectric constant, which stabilizes transition states and accelerates rates for polar mechanisms. In hydrolysis reactions, for example, acetonitrile-water mixtures lower the dielectric constant relative to pure water, enhancing the rate of pH-independent hydrolysis of phosphate triesters by facilitating nucleophilic attack, with observed rate constants increasing by factors of 2-5 depending on cosolvent concentration.^[38]^[39] This modulation also applies to enzyme-catalyzed processes, where cosolvents adjust solvent polarity to boost maximal reaction rates by 2-2.5 fold while reducing Michaelis constants for substrates.^[40] Despite these benefits, challenges in using cosolvents include their volatility, which poses safety and environmental risks during handling and disposal, as volatile organic cosolvents contribute to atmospheric emissions.^[41] Compatibility with catalysts remains a hurdle, particularly in biocatalytic syntheses, where high cosolvent concentrations can denature enzymes or deactivate metal catalysts, necessitating careful optimization to avoid inactivation.^[42] Additionally, post-reaction purification steps are complicated by the need to remove residual cosolvents, often requiring energy-intensive distillation or extraction, which increases process costs and complexity in multistep pharmaceutical routes.^[33]

Environmental Applications

Remediation Techniques

Cosolvents play a key role in soil washing processes for environmental remediation, where they are added to aqueous solutions to desorb organic pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and pesticides from soil particles. By increasing the solubility of these hydrophobic contaminants through cosolvency effects, cosolvents like ethanol and acetone facilitate their extraction, often achieving removal efficiencies of 50-90% depending on soil type, contaminant concentration, and cosolvent dosage. For example, laboratory experiments using 95% methanol as a cosolvent in flushing simulations removed 81-95% of total PAH mass from former manufactured gas plant soils across various column lengths, demonstrating the technique's potential for high recovery rates while highlighting rate limitations for lower-molecular-weight PAHs.^[43] Similar enhancements have been observed with ethanol and acetone in washing trials for crude oil-contaminated soils, where cosolvent addition boosted desorption by leveraging reduced interfacial tension and improved mass transfer.^[44] In groundwater remediation, cosurfactant-cosolvent systems are integrated into pump-and-treat methods to mobilize dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) like trichloroethylene (TCE), which are otherwise persistent sources of contamination. Alcohols such as n-butanol serve as cosolvents in these formulations, enhancing DNAPL solubility and reducing density to promote displacement without excessive pooling. Field applications have shown n-butanol-based systems achieving 75-96% recovery of surfactants and cosolvents, with corresponding DNAPL mobilization rates of up to 72% in permeable zones.^[45] These systems work by partitioning into the DNAPL phase, swelling it and increasing its mobility for extraction via pumping wells.^[46] EPA case studies from Superfund sites illustrate practical implementation of cosolvent flushing, with optimization focusing on cosolvent concentrations of 5-20% to maximize extraction while preserving aquifer permeability. At the Former Sages Dry Cleaners site in Jacksonville, Florida, injection of a 95% ethanol solution (adjusted in subsequent phases for lower concentrations) removed 63% of the PCE DNAPL mass (approximately 11 gallons) over targeted extraction wells, aided by post-flushing water to recover residuals.^[47] Similarly, at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune (Site 88), a cosolvent-surfactant blend including isopropanol achieved 72% DNAPL removal (76 gallons) after optimizing injection volumes and recycling 19% of the solution, though efficacy was limited in low-permeability layers.^[47] Tracer tests and permeability assessments guided these optimizations, ensuring cosolvent volumes balanced solubility gains against potential reductions in hydraulic conductivity.^[48] Environmental considerations in cosolvent applications emphasize the biodegradability of common agents like ethanol, acetone, and n-butanol, which degrade rapidly under aerobic conditions to minimize persistence in the subsurface. Ethanol, for instance, undergoes quick microbial breakdown in aquifers, often within days to weeks, supporting its use without long-term accumulation.^[49] Acetone is similarly biodegradable and less toxic than many alternatives, facilitating safer extraction processes.^[50] However, risks of secondary contamination arise if cosolvents are not fully recovered, as they can inadvertently mobilize sorbed heavy metals or other unintended pollutants, necessitating post-treatment monitoring and extraction to mitigate plume expansion.^[51] n-Butanol's partial partitioning into DNAPLs also requires careful dosing to avoid residual organic carbon that could stimulate unwanted microbial activity.^[52] The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides guidance on cosolvent applications through status reports and site-specific evaluations to ensure compliance with remediation standards and minimize ecological risks.^[53]

Green Chemistry Integration

Cosolvents play a pivotal role in aligning chemical processes with the 12 principles of green chemistry, particularly principle 5, which emphasizes the use of safer solvents and auxiliaries to minimize environmental and health risks.^[54] By replacing toxic organic solvents in extraction processes, cosolvents such as ethanol—derived from renewable biomass sources—enable more sustainable operations while maintaining efficacy.^[55] This substitution reduces the reliance on hazardous volatile organic compounds (VOCs), promoting waste prevention (principle 1) and the design of safer chemical syntheses (principle 4).^[56] In waste treatment applications, cosolvent-assisted supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) has emerged as an eco-friendly method for recycling plastics and removing dyes from wastewater. For plastic recycling, supercritical CO₂ modified with cosolvents like ethanol enhances the removal of contaminants from polypropylene and poly(vinyl chloride), preserving polymer integrity while avoiding traditional solvent-based methods that generate hazardous residues.^[57] These processes operate under mild conditions, reducing energy consumption and aligning with green chemistry's focus on renewable feedstocks and reduced derivatives (principles 7 and 9).^[58] Innovations in bio-based cosolvents, such as ethyl lactate produced from corn-derived lactic acid via fermentation, have advanced their use in industrial cleaning by offering biodegradable alternatives to petroleum-based solvents.^[59] Ethyl lactate effectively dissolves oils, greases, and resins in applications like surface preparation and ink removal, with low volatility and rapid biodegradability minimizing VOC emissions and aquatic toxicity.^[60] The adoption of such cosolvents contributes to E-factor reductions— a key green chemistry metric measuring waste per unit of product—by lowering solvent consumption and enabling cleaner processes.^[61]^[62] Looking to future trends, the integration of cosolvents with nanotechnology holds promise for targeted pollutant removal, enhancing the precision and efficiency of environmental remediation. In 2020s research, cosolvent-modified supercritical fluids have been combined with nanomaterials like TiO₂ nanoparticles to improve photocatalytic degradation of persistent organic pollutants, where cosolvents such as water or ethanol stabilize suspensions and boost reaction rates by modulating solvent polarity.^[63] This synergy supports scalable, low-energy systems for wastewater treatment, potentially reducing remediation costs while adhering to green principles of catalysis and real-time analysis (principles 8 and 11).^[64]

Modeling Approaches

Solubility Approximations

Solubility approximations for cosolvent systems provide empirical tools for estimating the impact of cosolvents on solute solubility in mixed solvents, enabling quick predictions without complex thermodynamic calculations. These methods are particularly valuable in pharmaceutical and chemical engineering contexts for initial screening and formulation design. One foundational approach is Yalkowsky's general treatment method, which leverages the octanol-water partition coefficient (log P) to quantify cosolvent effects on hydrophobic solutes.^[13] The core of Yalkowsky's log-linear model approximates the solubility enhancement as \log(S_m / S_w) \approx \sigma f_c, where S_m is the solute solubility in the mixed solvent, S_w is the solubility in pure water, \sigma is the solubilization capacity of the cosolvent (a measure of its ability to increase solubility), and f_c is the volume fraction of the cosolvent. This linear relationship holds well for low to moderate cosolvent concentrations and non-electrolyte solutes, with \sigma often estimated or refined using the solute's log P to account for hydrophobicity; for instance, more hydrophobic solutes (higher log P) exhibit larger \sigma values, following relations like \sigma = a \log P + b, where a and b are empirically derived constants.^[65]^[66] An adaptation of the Setchenow equation extends these approximations to capture salting-out or salting-in effects in cosolvent systems, particularly for organic cosolvents that may behave similarly to salts in modulating solubility. The modified form is k_s = \log(S_0 / S) / C, where S_0 is the reference solubility (typically in pure water), S is the solubility in the cosolvent mixture, C is the cosolvent concentration (in mol/kg), and k_s is the Setchenow constant (negative for salting-in by cosolvents like alcohols). This equation is applied in dilute cosolvent regimes to predict solubility changes, linking to molecular interactions via Kirkwood-Buff theory, and is useful for systems where cosolvents induce preferential solvation.^[67] Practical guidelines for applying these approximations include using empirically derived \sigma values for common cosolvents, which facilitate rapid estimations but assume ideal mixing and negligible activity coefficient variations. These values vary with solute type via the log P relation; for ethanol-water systems, \sigma \approx 3.5 is typical for many pharmaceuticals with moderate hydrophobicity. Limitations arise in non-ideal mixtures, where deviations occur due to self-association of cosolvents (e.g., hydrogen bonding in alcohols) or high concentrations (>50% cosolvent), leading to curvature in solubility profiles that the linear approximation over- or under-predicts.^[66]^[68] Historically, these approximations emerged from 1970s pharmaceutical research aimed at solubilizing poorly water-soluble drugs, with Yalkowsky and colleagues introducing the log-linear framework in foundational studies on cosolvent partitioning and solubility. Subsequent updates integrated quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) approaches, incorporating log P and other molecular descriptors to predict \sigma without extensive experimentation, enhancing applicability across diverse solutes.^[69]^[65]

Predictive Models

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations provide a detailed atomic-level understanding of cosolvent effects by modeling solute-cosolvent interactions in solvent mixtures. These simulations employ force fields such as OPLS-AA to capture non-bonded interactions, including van der Waals and electrostatic forces, enabling the prediction of solvation structures. For instance, in systems involving glucose dissolved in water-cosolvent mixtures like DMSO, THF, or DMF, OPLS-AA-based MD reveals how cosolvents compete with water molecules, displacing them from the first solvation shell and localizing around specific hydroxyl groups on the solute. This competition leads to enhanced hydrogen bond lifetimes between the solute and remaining water molecules, potentially stabilizing the solute against aggregation. Key outputs include radial distribution functions (RDFs), which quantify the probability of finding cosolvent molecules at various distances from the solute, highlighting preferential binding in the solvation shell and reduced solute mobility with increasing cosolvent concentration.^[70] Group contribution methods like UNIFAC and COSMO-RS offer predictive capabilities for activity coefficients in cosolvent mixtures, essential for estimating non-ideal solution behavior without extensive experimental data. UNIFAC, a combinatorial-residual model, decomposes molecules into functional groups to compute activity coefficients, particularly useful for cosolvent partitioning in nonaqueous two-phase systems such as NAPL-water mixtures with ethanol or methanol. It predicts ternary phase diagrams by calculating group interaction parameters, showing good agreement with experimental partitioning data for cosolvent-enhanced solubilization of hydrophobic compounds. The residual contribution, for example, approximates the activity coefficient as \Gamma_i = \exp\left(\sum_k \theta_k \tau_{ki}\right), where \theta_k represents surface area fractions and \tau_{ki} accounts for group interactions, aiding forecasts of phase equilibria in multi-component cosolvent environments. COSMO-RS complements UNIFAC by incorporating quantum mechanical surface charge densities (sigma profiles) to predict activity coefficients in cosolvent systems, outperforming traditional group contribution methods in aqueous and nonaqueous mixtures involving polar solutes. This conductor-like screening model evaluates misfit and hydrogen-bonding interactions between molecular surfaces, enabling accurate infinite dilution activity coefficients for solutes like alkyl halides in water-ethanol cosolvents. Compared to UNIFAC, COSMO-RS demonstrates superior performance in systems with limited group parameters, such as aromatic cosolvents, with root mean square errors often below 0.7 log units for activity coefficients.^[71] Recent machine learning approaches, particularly post-2020 neural network models, have advanced cosolvent efficacy predictions by training on large solubility databases encompassing drug-cosolvent-water systems. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) and ensemble methods like XGBoost, fed with physicochemical descriptors such as molar volumes and Hansen solubility parameters, achieve high accuracy in forecasting solubility enhancements. For example, XGBoost models yield R² values exceeding 0.97 for drug solubilities in binary cosolvent mixtures, outperforming linear regressions by capturing nonlinear interactions between solute, cosolvent, and water fractions. These models prioritize features like cosolvent polarity, enabling rapid screening of optimal cosolvent ratios for pharmaceutical formulations.^[72] Validation of these predictive models involves benchmarking against experimental data in multi-component systems, revealing their strengths in complex cosolvent environments. MD simulations combined with machine learning, using molecular fingerprints from GAFF force fields, predict infinite dilution activity coefficients with RMSEs of 0.7 log units, comparable to COSMO-RS (RMSE 0.7) and superior to UNIFAC (RMSE 1.6), as verified on datasets like LGAM_OLAP with 211 organic liquids. Graph neural networks, augmented with semi-supervised COSMO-RS data, further reduce mean absolute errors to 0.67 kcal/mol for solvation free energies in ternary solvent mixtures, addressing data scarcity by distilling quantum predictions into experimental benchmarks from MixSolDB (56,789 entries). Such comparisons highlight the models' reliability for non-ideal multi-component cosolvent systems, where traditional approximations fall short.^[73]^[74]

References

[1]
Compounding Using Solvents and Cosolvent Systems - PubMed
A cosolvent is an additional solvent added to a primary solvent. Cosolvents must be compatible, nontoxic, and safe for the patient.Missing: definition | Show results with:definition
[2]
Review of the cosolvency models for predicting solubility of drugs in ...
The cosolvency models presented from 1960 to 2007 were reviewed and their accuracies for correlating and/or predicting the solubility of drugs in water- ...
[3]
[PDF] Review of the cosolvency models for predicting solubility of drugs in ...
The common cosolvents which, are used in the pharmaceutical industry are ethanol, propylene glycol, glycerine, glycofural and polyethylene glycols (3). Their ...
[4]
Effect of cosolvents on the solubility of hydrocarbons in water
Effect of cosolvents on the solubility of hydrocarbons in water | Environmental Science & Technology.
[5]
Solubilization of naphthalene and cosolvent property - Li - 1996 ...
The addition of an organic cosolvent to water can increase the aqueous solubility of many hydrophobic organic compounds (HOCs).
[6]
Cosolvent – Knowledge and References - Taylor & Francis
A cosolvent is a water-soluble organic solvent added to enhance the solubility of compounds not easily soluble in water.
[7]
Liquid cathode primary batteries - ScienceDirect.com
An inorganic cosolvent and suitable salt are capable of alleviating this corrosion. Calcium/oxyhalide cells have been studied because of their promise of ...
[8]
Cosolvents - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics
A cosolvent is defined as a solvent that is added to a primary solvent (typically water) to modify the properties of a solution or the behavior of a solute, ...
[9]
Cosolvents in Self-Emulsifying Drug Delivery Systems (SEDDS) - NIH
Three different SEDDS comprising the cosolvents DMSO (FD), ethanol (FE), and benzyl alcohol (FBA) as well as the corresponding formulations without these ...
[10]
The Hydrophobic Effect and the Role of Cosolvents - ACS Publications
Cosolvents can be used to modulate hydrophobic effects. The term “cosolvent” used herein denotes not only a second solvent (e.g., an alcohol) added in small ...
[11]
Solubility, Solution Thermodynamics, and Preferential Solvation of ...
Nov 16, 2020 · The preferential solvation model suggested by Ben Naim, called the inverse Kirkwood–Buff Integral (IKBI), allows determining, at the molecular ...
[12]
A cosolvent surfactant mechanism affects polymer collapse ... - Nature
Nov 11, 2020 · We herein demonstrate that alcohols reduce the free energy cost of creating a repulsive polymer–solvent interface via a surfactant-like mechanism.
[13]
Solubilization by Cosolvents. Establishing Useful Constants for the ...
The purpose of this study was to develop constants for the log-linear cosolvent model, thereby allowing accurate prediction of solubilization.
[14]
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167732219334932
[15]
Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Drug Solubilization Behavior in ...
Nov 3, 2022 · Nonionic surfactants and ethanol are widely used in surfactant and cosolvent co-solubilized injections. These injectable formulations are ...
[16]
(PDF) Thermodynamic analysis and preferential solvation of metronida
Oct 7, 2025 · With regard to preferential solvation, the results are not entirely conclusive, since, except in intermediate mixtures, the values of the ...
[17]
Temperature-dependent solubilization and thermodynamic ...
Mar 26, 2025 · PEG 400 mass fraction and temperature both improved the solubility of RCB in mole fraction in the compositions of {PEG 400 + water}. It was ...
[18]
Bioavailability Enhancement Techniques for Poorly Aqueous ... - PMC
Co-solvents are used to enhance the drug's solubility ... drug solubility enhancement are significant challenges in the area of pharmaceutical formulations.
[19]
Use of Solubility Parameter to Design Dry Suspension of Cefaclor as ...
The solvent blend water:propylene glycol (20:80) in which the drug exhibited maximum solubility was used as the reconstituting medium for formulation of dry ...
[20]
Application of cosolvency and cocrystallization approach to enhance ...
Jul 30, 2025 · Cosolvency is a widely used method to help enhance drug solubility. Application of a cosolvent helps to reduce surface tension and polarity of ...
[21]
Prevalence of ethanol and other potentially harmful excipients in ...
Jul 26, 2019 · Ethanol use in studied pediatric formulations was quite high, with ethanol-containing formulations being prescribed for children 0–6 years and ...
[22]
Stabilization of vitamin E-enriched mini-emulsions - ScienceDirect.com
However, the storage stability of the vitamin E-enriched emulsions decreased in the presence of cosolvents, particularly at elevated temperatures [8], [9].
[23]
[PDF] Using the Inactive Ingredient Database Guidance for Industry - FDA
give IID users a clearer understanding of the database's benefits and limitations ... One example is the excipient mixture glyceryl oleate/propylene glycol, which ...
[24]
[PDF] 217150Orig1s000 - accessdata.fda.gov
Sep 11, 2023 · ... FDA final rule, passed in 1995, established standards for the maximum concentration ... max 10% ethanol; children ages 6 to 12 years: max 5%.
[25]
Solubility and Thermodynamic Properties of Febuxostat in Various ...
Oct 19, 2022 · PEG 400 has been examined as a potential solubilizer/cosolvent for the solubilization of several weakly soluble pharmacological molecules, such ...
[26]
Paclitaxel Nano-Delivery Systems: A Comprehensive Review - NIH
Due to its low water solubility, paclitaxel is formulated in a mixture of Cremophor EL and dehydrated ethanol (50:50, v/v) a combination known as Taxol. However ...
[27]
Solubility, Hansen Solubility Parameters and Thermodynamic ... - NIH
“Polyethylene glycol-400 (PEG-400)” has been reported as an efficient cosolvent in solubilization of drugs in aqueous media and it is miscible with water in ...<|separator|>
[28]
Improving Tenoxicam Solubility and Bioavailability by Cosolvent ...
The advantage of cosolvent technology enhancing drug solubility in a liquid-based formulation includes (1) convenience, removing the need for mixing solvent ...
[29]
Drug Delivery Approaches in Addressing Clinical Pharmacology ...
One major disadvantage is precipitation on dilution. When a formulation is diluted with blood or other aqueous media, the concentrations of both the drug and ...
[30]
Insoluble drug delivery strategies: review of recent advances and ...
Though co-solvency and surfactant solubilization techniques are widely used for enhancing the solubility of hydrophobic drugs, they have some disadvantages: ...
[31]
Synthetic Organic “Aquachemistry” that Relies on Neither ...
Apr 21, 2021 · Modern synthetic organic chemistry relies heavily on the use of vast amounts of organic solvents to perform many aspects of both laboratory ...
[32]
Eco-Friendly Alternatives to Conventional Solvents: Innovations and ...
Oct 12, 2025 · Bio-based solvents, such as dimethyl carbonate, limonene, and ethyl lactate, have low toxicity and biodegradable properties and ensure decreased ...
[33]
Synthesis of peptide bonds by proteinases. Addition of organic ...
Synthesis of peptide bonds by proteinases. Addition of organic cosolvents shifts peptide bond equilibriums toward synthesis.
[34]
Peptide synthesis in aqueous–organic solvent mixtures with α ...
It was found that the yield of peptide increased with increasing concentration of organic cosolvent. Almost complete synthesis (97%) of Ac–Phe–Ala–NH2 was ...
[35]
https://analyticalsciencejournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/bit.260261003
[36]
Organic Synthesis “On Water” | Chemical Reviews - ACS Publications
2.7 Nucleophilic Substitution Reactions. An example of an efficient nucleophilic substitution reaction was reported by Finn, Sharpless, and co-workers. (87 ...Missing: pharmaceuticals | Show results with:pharmaceuticals
[37]
Kinetics of the pH-Independent Hydrolysis of Bis(2,4-dinitrophenyl ...
The initial addition of acetonitrile to water (χw from 0.971 to 0.871) results in a decrease of kobs and increase in ΔH⧧ and ΔS⧧ since uncoordinated water ...
[38]
Kinetic cosolvent effects on the alkaline fading of crystal violet in the ...
The presence of cosolvents affect the reaction rate and mechanism by various ways, such as changing dielectric constant, solvent polarity parameters and ...
[39]
The solvent effects on the kinetics of bacterial formate ...
The increase in concentration of organic cosolvents results in a 2–2.5-fold increase of the maximal reaction rate and a decrease of Michaelis constant for ...
[40]
CHAPTER 5: Organic Solvents: Environmentally Benign Solutions
Aug 28, 2020 · Organic solvents present many problems for the industry including release of Volatile Organic Chemicals to atmosphere and the difficulties ...
[41]
Integrating biocatalysis with continuous flow - ScienceDirect.com
Jul 8, 2025 · In particular, the main challenges and strategies such as poor substrate solubility, cofactor regeneration, incompatibility problems, and ...
[42]
Cosolvent Flushing for the Remediation of PAHs from Former ... - NIH
In this work, we examine cosolvent flushing for the removal of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil from a former manufactured gas plant (FMGP).Missing: washing pesticides
[43]
(PDF) Effect of Ethanol and Acetone Cosolvents in Enhancing ...
May 24, 2023 · Although 20% ethanol has been shown to be a better cosolvents compared to 20% acetone, either of them can be incorporated into EKR technology ...Missing: butanol | Show results with:butanol
[44]
Density-Modified Displacement for DNAPL Source Zone Remediation
Jun 17, 2002 · Surfactant and n-butanol recoveries ranged from 75 to 96% based on effluent concentration data. The observed minimal mobilization during the n- ...
[45]
Experimental investigation of cosolvent flushing of DNAPL in double ...
The most common cosolvents considered for DNAPL remediation are low molecular weight alcohols such as ethanol, 1-propanol, and 2-propanol which are highly ...
[46]
[PDF] Abstracts of Remediation Case Studies Volume 6 - US EPA
In Situ Treatment Using Cosolvent Flushing ... conducted under EPA's Superfund Innovative Technology Evaluation (SITE) program in conjunction with EPA's.
[47]
[PDF] Abstracts of Remediation Case Studies Volume 5 - US EPA
Efficiency of the co-solvent flushing could be optimized through detailed tracer test evaluation and appropriate adjustments to the injection/extraction ...
[48]
[PDF] Fate and Transport of Ethanol-Blended Gasoline in the Environment
Oct 27, 1999 · Consequently, flushing cosolvents including ethanol ... ethanol biodegradation under diverse environmental conditions, and the factors that may.
[49]
[PDF] Remediation of soils, sediments and sludges by extraction with ...
Acetone is suitable for use in a solvent extraction process, because it is less toxic than most other organic solvents, easily biodegradable, and socially ...<|control11|><|separator|>
[50]
Co-Solvent-Based Remediation Approaches - epa nepis
CONCLUSIONS Co-solvent extraction was used successfully to remove a significant amount of the DNAPL contamination. The injection/extraction process aided in ...
[51]
Biodegradation of Ethanol, n-Butanol, iso-Butanol, n-Propanol, 2,5 ...
The experiments are intended to determine the: • Kinetics of natural biodegradation of ethanol, n-butanol, iso-butanol, n-propanol, 2,5-dimethylfuran, and ...Missing: acetone cosolvents
[52]
12 Principles of Green Chemistry - American Chemical Society
The object is to choose solvents that make sense chemically, reduce the energy requirements, have the least toxicity, have the fewest life cycle environmental ...
[53]
Evolution of green chemistry and its multidimensional impacts - PMC
Paul Anastas and John Warner, in the 1990s, postulated the 12 principles of Green Chemistry, which are based on the minimization or non-use of toxic solvents ...
[54]
Basics of Green Chemistry | US EPA
Feb 4, 2025 · The 12 Principles of Green Chemistry · 1. Prevent waste · 2. Maximize atom economy · 3. Design less hazardous chemical syntheses · 4. Design safer ...Missing: cosolvents | Show results with:cosolvents
[55]
Assessment of Supercritical CO2 Extraction as a Method for Plastic ...
Jun 15, 2020 · This study proved the effectiveness of the supercritical extraction using CO 2 in extracting organic contaminants from plastics, while maintaining their ...Missing: cosolvent- assisted
[56]
Removal of Ionic Dyes from Water by Solvent Extraction Using ...
A new technique based on liquid/liquid extraction using reverse micelles is proposed whereby recovery of solvent and reuse of dye is possible.
[57]
[PDF] Natural dyes eco-extraction using supercritical CO2 - HAL
Jan 9, 2025 · As sc-CO2 is a non-polar solvent, hydroalcoholic solutions were added as cosolvents to modulate the polarity of the extraction fluid and its.
[58]
Ethyl Lactate Natural Supplier | 97-64-3 - Silver Fern Chemical
Ethyl lactate, also known as lactic acid ethyl ester, is an organic compound commonly used as a solvent. It is considered biodegradable and environmental- ...
[59]
Lactic Ester Solvents: A Sustainable Choice in Industrial Cleaning
Aug 21, 2025 · They are biodegradable, low in VOCs, and deliver excellent solvency for oils, greases, resins, inks, and adhesives, making them a smart ...
[60]
The E factor at 30: a passion for pollution prevention - RSC Publishing
Jan 17, 2023 · It has been successfully used as solvent, or co-solvent with water, in a wide variety of organic reactions, including biocatalytic ...
[61]
Co-Solvent Selection for Supercritical Fluid Extraction (SFE ... - MDPI
The following co-solvents were studied prior to the optimization of supercritical carbon dioxide (SC–CO2) technique: ethanol, water, methanol, as well as ...
[62]
(PDF) Stability and application of TiO2 nanomaterials in aqueous ...
Jun 18, 2025 · In this review, we present and discuss the versatility of dispersants for stabilizing TiNMs. The investigations are discussed within the framework of DLVO ...
[63]
Nanoremediation: Nanomaterials and Nanotechnologies for ...
Dec 23, 2021 · Nanoremediation uses engineered nanomaterials to clean up polluted media, and this technique is less costly and more effective than most typical ...
[64]
Polymer−Water Partition Coefficients of Hydrophobic Compounds ...
Cosolvent models have been developed for modeling solubility as a function of the volume fraction or mole fraction of cosolvent (12-14). ... ; Yalkowsky, S. H. ...
[65]
[PDF] effect of alcohol cosolvents on the aqueous solubility of toxaphene
Addition of 75% alcohol cosolvents increased the solubility of the toxaphene in water ranging from 300-800%, depending on the cosolvent type. This provides a ...
[66]
Establishing useful constants for the log–linear model - ScienceDirect
The purpose of this study was to develop constants for the log–linear cosolvent model, thereby allowing accurate prediction of solubilization.Missing: earliest | Show results with:earliest
[67]
Solubility Enhancement of Hydrophobic Compounds in Aqueous ...
Jul 24, 2023 · Although the simplicity of the Setschenow equation may suggest that it is just an empirical relationship, actually it is related to Kirkwood ...<|control11|><|separator|>
[68]
Review of the cosolvency models for predicting solubility of drugs in ...
Aug 6, 2025 · The simplest cosolvency model, ie the log-linear model of Yalkowsky, provides an estimate of drug solubility in water-cosolvent mixtures using aqueous ...
[69]
Cosolvency and deviations from log-linear solubilization - PubMed
The observed solubilities were examined for deviations from solubilities calculated by the equation log Sm = f log Sc + (1 - f) log Sw, where Sm is the ...
[70]
https://doi.org/10.1039/C4RA15123B
[71]
https://doi.org/10.1021/ie020974v
[72]
https://doi.org/10.15446/rcciquifa.v54n3.122716
[73]
https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jcim.0c00479
[74]
https://doi.org/10.1039/D5DD00015G