Note
Revenue Canada has published this alcoholometric laboratory table under the authority of Canada's Minister of National Revenue.

Canadian Cataloguing in Publication Data Revenue Canada Canadian Alcoholometric Laboratory Table ISBN 0-660-60186-9 DSS cat. no. Rv 31-45/1997

Introduction

Revenue Canada's Laboratory and Scientific Services Directorate has compiled the Canadian Alcoholometric Laboratory Table. This table provides an accurate and simple correlation between the density-in-air of a water-ethanol mixture at 20 C to its corresponding strength expressed in percentage by volume at 20 C, and in percentage by mass.

You can use this table with pycnometers or digital density meters that are calibrated in air to determine alcoholic strength of water-alcohol mixtures or unobscured spirits at 20 C.

Our department is pleased to offer you this table of alcoholometry.

Pierre Gravelle
Deputy Minister of National Revenue
December 1996

Contents

• Laboratory Table
  • Basis of table
  • Arrangement and range of table
• Examples of Practical Use
  • From the mass of spirits:
  • From the volume of spirits:
• Symbols
• Table

Laboratory Table

Basis of table

At the Laboratory and Scientific Services Directorate, we have calculated directly from the general formula that the International Organization of Legal Metrology established (International Recommendation No. 22, Fourth International Conference of Legal Metrology - October, 1972, First Edition 1973)

Arrangement and range of table

We have constructed the table according to systematic increments of density-in-air of 0.0001 g/cm3 steps, ranging from pure water to absolute ethyl alcohol. The density-in-air of absolute ethyl alcohol, C2H5OH as calculated from the general formula, is 0.7881589894 g/cm3 at 20 C.

We have calculated values for individual density steps of 0.0001 g/cm3, corresponding to the percentage of absolute ethyl alcohol by volume at 20 C and by mass.

Examples of Practical Use

You can use this table to calculate the quantity of absolute ethyl alcohol by volume at 20 C, or the quantity of absolute ethyl alcohol by mass from the mass, volume and density-in-air measurements of the spirit taken at 20 C.

From the mass of spirits:

Example 1

Scale tank indication = 20 135 kg
Density-in-air = 0.9460
Temperature = 20 C
From the table:
% Vol = 40.61
20 135 kg / 0.9460 = 21 284.4 L (litres of spirits at 20 C)
21 284.4 L x 40.61% = 8 643.6 L (litres of absolute ethyl alcohol
at 20 C)

Example 2

Scale tank indication = 22 893 kg
Density-in-air = 0.9805
Temperature = 20 C
From the table:
% Mass = 10.21
22 893 kg x 10.21% = 2337.4 kg (kilograms of absolute ethyl
alcohol)

For revenue purposes under the Excise Act, we use only litres of
absolute ethyl alcohol at 20 C.

From the volume of spirits:

Example 1

Flowmeter reading = 24 615.0 L
Density-in-air = 0.8102
Temperature = 20 C
From the table:
% Vol = 95.03
24 615.0 L x 95.03% = 23 391.6 L (litres of absolute ethyl
alcohol at 20 C)

Example 2

Flowmeter reading = 19 583.0 L
Density-in-air = 0.9913
Temperature = 20 C
From the table:
% Mass = 3.22
19 583.0 L x 0.9913 = 19 412.6 kg (kilograms of spirits)
19 412.6 kg x 3.22% = 625.1 kg (kilograms of absolute ethyl
alcohol)

For revenue purposes under the Excise Act, we use only litres of
absolute ethyl alcohol at 20 C.

Symbols

C = degree Celsius

Density = mass per unit volume and is numerically the same whether expressed as g/cm3 or as kg/L

% Vol = percentage of absolute ethyl alcohol by volume at 20 C

% Mass = percentage of absolute ethyl alcohol by mass

Table

ZIP Canadian Alcoholometric Laboratory Table 1996 (921 KB)

The tables are very large. Most spreadsheet software will not be able to load all the rows at once. One way of dealing with this problem is by using a word processor:

1. Open the file as 'PLAIN TEXT' in the word processor.
2. Select the required rows of the table.
3. Save the selection to a file or copy the selection to the clipboard.
4. Open the new file (subset of the table) with the spreadsheet software or paste the selection into the spreadsheet software.