The solubilities of seven gases in olive oil with reference to theories of transport through the cell membrane

The solubilities of He, Ne, Ar, N2, O2, CO and CO2 in olive oil have been determined in the temperature range 24–56 C. The gas solubility apparatus was a considerably improved version of the one reported by Morrison and Billett and gave a precision, depending on the gas solvent system of ±0.2% to ±1.0%. Plots of log L, the Ostwald coefficient, and log α, the Bunsen coefficient, against 1/TK were linear and showed a small temperature dependence for CO2. The enthalpy and entropy changes corresponding to the solution process were calculated. The partition coefficients of the gases between olive oil and water were calculated using reported values for the solubility of the gases in water. These results have been used to test and extend the Meyer-Overton theory of transport through the cell membrane.