Petroleum ether cas# 101316-46-5

[k.neo]

"Petroleum ether", with a Bp 30 - 60°C
Hydrocarbon mixture C5-C8 Aliphates.

Should I worry about the C8 part or can be used for pulls as is?
If pulling as is then when evaporated I am left with mostly C8. Will it evap from the end product cleanly?

Will distilling C5-C7 and leaving C8 behind be beneficial for pulling?

 

[downwardsfromzero]

In my view, C8 will help with pulling, and it isn't that hard to evaporate afterwards. Freeze precipitation is preferable to recovery through evaporation anyhow.

But by all means play with fractional distillation if you know what's what. You won't find much octane in there with a boiling range like that.

 

[Jees]

I concur with the above.

...Will distilling C5-C7 and leaving C8 behind be beneficial for pulling?

That would be a serious undertaking to split those and impossible for the kitchen chemist I reckon, and no need for that, octane is perfect. It only rises the boiling point a tiny bit that's all. C8 will evaporate well and will not leave you a residu that won't evap.

The drift is that for pulling you are well set with some larger molecules (and C8 isn't large actually), only for swift evaporating it's best to stay below C10 and for re-X it's better to stay low like C6-C7. These are ideals and not suggesting that deviating from this won't work, it will work but just lesser ideal.

I looked at this particular CAS 101316-46-5 msds:

https://www.cgc.edu/Academics/ScienceLab/Test1/Petroleum%20Ether.pdf

and they say concentration 90 - 100%
I do wonder what the other 10% might be in worst case.