Jamie C. that is displacement and evaporation. its not being soaked by the alcohol.
"Displace" equals "move" or "push aside".
Water displaces most types of oil. They don't mix. They settle in two distinct, separate layers.
Alcohol does not
displace water, or vice versa. The two mix, on a molecular level, resulting in a volume that is not an equal of the two original volumes combined. ( meaning 1 oz. of water plus 1 oz. of alcohol won't produce a volume of 2 oz., even though the
weight will be a total of the two liquids. )
It's like taking a cup of #12 shot and pouring it into a cup full of 00 pellets; the smaller stuff will fit in the spaces between the larger. The weight goes up, but the two don't occupy twice the space space, they simply make more efficient use of the given volume.
Also, since alcohol has a faster evaporation rate than water, it is likely to evaporate away and leave the water behind, unless the combined solution is removed by some mechanical method, such as wiping it away. ( It's the same thing that happens when you coat a gun in a solution of Ballistol and water; the water evaporates away, leaving behind a coating of Ballistol. )
So, wiping a gun down or swabbing the bore with alcohol isn't going to gain a person anything, except for maybe a rusty gun, unless the steel is wiped dry.
This stuff is basic grade-school chemistry that I learned some 30+ years ago. Look it up if you don't believe me.
J.C.