Typical household vinegar is a 4% to 6% (by weight) solution of acetic
acid (CH3C00H) in water. The addition of impurities to water raises the
boiling point. For the concentration of household vinegar, the boiling
point is about 100.6 degrees Celsius, or about 213 degrees F. You can
expect higher concentrations of acetic acid to increase the boiling
point even more. Diluting the vinegar will bring the boiling point
closer to that of pure water. Additional substances mixed in with the
vinegar may change its boiling point by small amounts, but only for the
dissolved substances, not ones in suspension.
You might search this site under 'boiling' to find answers about
why solutes raise the boiling point and lower the freezing point.
We'd like to thank Prof. Margaret Kastner of Bucknell University for
bringing to our attention that my previous answer was wrong. I had
incorrectly stated that the boiling point was 118 degrees C, which is
in fact the boiling point of glacial acetic acid, which is
approximately 99% CH3C00H.
Tom
(published on 10/22/2007)
