Thanks for this great summary, Paul.  I was wondering about the alcohol mix and
had my doubts.  Thank you for testing this out for us all.  I think I will add
some spirits to my mineral oil, (learning all the time).

Nora
Calgary, Alberta

"Monfils, Paul" wrote:

> I was surprised at the mention of mixing alcohol with mineral oil, because I
> didn't think they mixed very well.  But before I opened my mouth I thought I
> had better check - which was easy to do since I'm at work at the moment, in
> the lab.  I tried mixing mineral oil 50-50 with pure ethyl alcohol, pure
> methyl alcohol, and pure isopropyl alcohol.  None of them mixed well.  The
> best I got after stirring for 15 minutes was clouds of tiny oil droplets
> suspended in the alcohol.  And that's with pure (water-free) alcohol.  The
> alcohol you buy in the pharmacy usually a 70% to 90% solution, that is, it
> contains anywhere from 10% to 30% water.  I tried mixing mineral oil with
> 90% ethyl alcohol, and that was really a mess.  The oil just forms large
> blobs that float around while stirring, then sink to the bottom.  So
> apparently mineral oil has to be cut with one of the hydrocarbon solvents
> that have been mentioned (mineral spirits, kerosene, xylene, toluene, etc.)
> Regards,
> Paul M.