The dielectric behavior of the supercooled aqueous solutions of
dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), ethylene glycol
(EG), and methanol (MeOH) has been examined in the frequency range
106−10-3 Hz and in the
x
m range of
0.19−0.40, 0.25−0.85, and 0.50−0.85, respectively, where
x
m is the mole fraction of the second
component.
Differential scanning calorimetric measurements have also been
carried out on the samples. At temperatures
above the glass transition temperature (T
g), it
was found that the Hevriliak−Negami relaxation function
is
appropriate to describe the data. The “apparent” distribution
in relaxation times increases with increasing
water content and also on lowering the temperature. But at
temperatures just above T
g, an Arrhenius
branch
of considerable polarization and with an activation energy of ∼21.5
kJ/mol separates out to continue to the
sub-T
g region, which more or less disappears
around x
m = 0.33 in DMSO solutions and around
x
m = 0.50 in
EG solutions. It is suggested that the complexes of 2:1 (in DMSO
solutions) and 1:1 (in EG solutions) are
present in the liquid that are thermolabile and exist in an
undissociated state only near T
g, and the
sub-T
g
process is due to the relaxation of water molecules. No evidence
of complex formation is found in MeOH
solutions.