Refractive Index and Dispersion of the Benzene‐Methanol System

The refractive indices of the benzene—methanol system have been measured at 25° at seven wavelengths in the visible region. The electronic polarizability of benzene, methanol, and carbon tetrachloride have been calculated from the refractive indices of this system and those of the benzene‐carbon tetrachloride system by use of the Bottcher equation. The data are then used to calculate the molar electronic polarizations of the carbon tetrachloride‐methanol system which are found to be in good agreement with experimentally determined values. These results show that, within the experimental error, the electronic polarizabilities of the three components are independent of the composition and hence of the environment. The electronic polarizabilities of the three substances are found to follow a dispersion equation with only one term.