Separation Techniques

Separation of Mixtures
In class, you have seen a couple of different techniques for separating mixtures. In your Matter Lab, you evaporated a solvent by heating a solution in order to recover a solute (either salt or sugar). This technique works well if the solute you are trying to recover does not break down into other substances upon heating. In your Separation of Mixtures lab, you used fractional crystallization in order to separate two dissolved solids. You were able to crystallize one substance but keep the other solute dissolved in the solvent at cold temperatures. This technique works well for substances with varying solubilities at cold temperatures. As we discussed in class, there are many different kinds of mixtures. Evaporation and fractional crystallization are only a couple of the possible methods out there. Please read the information below to learn more about a few other separation techniques. Much of the information below is taken from the following websites: http://www.gcsescience.com/e4-mixture-separation.htm http://www.tutorvista.com/content/science/science-i/matter-aroundpure/separation-constituents-mixtures.php
Mixtures
A mixture contains two or more substances! that have not reacted chemically with each other. A mixture can be separated by physical methods, a compound cannot. Example: A mixture of iron filings and sulfur !can be separated by using a magnet to attract the iron. Iron is a magnetic material but sulfur is not. If a mixture of iron filings and sulfur is heated!, the iron reacts with the sulfur and the compound iron (II) sulfide is formed. The compound iron (II) sulfide is not a magnetic material!, so you would not be able to separate the iron from the sulfur using a magnet in this case. Mixtures tend to retain properties of its components while compounds tend to have their own unique set of properties, completely different from its elemental components.
Filtration
A solid which has not dissolved in a liquid can be separated by filtration. A filter paper is placed inside a funnel and a collection container put beneath. The solid remaining in the filter paper is called the residue. The residue can be dried by spreading it out on the filter paper! and allowing the liquid to evaporate. The liquid that has passed through the filter paper is called the filtrate.
Crystallization
A solution (when a solid has been dissolved in a liquid)! can be separated by crystallization. The dissolved substance is called the solute. The liquid used for dissolving is called the solvent. A solution which has as much solid dissolved in it !as it can possibly contain is called a saturated solution. As the saturated solution is allowed to cool, ! the solid will come out of the solution and crystals will start to grow. ! The crystals can then be collected and allowed to dry.
Distillation
One liquid can be separated from a mixture! of liquids in a solution by distillation.
The solution is heated until it boils. The liquid with the lowest boiling point boils first and becomes a vapor (gas). The vapor is cooled in the condenser until the temperature !falls below the boiling point when it condenses back into a liquid !which is collected in a container. The collected liquid is called the distillate. It has been distilled. !The condenser has cold water running through a jacket around the outside! to keep the temperature below the boiling point of the vapor. This process can be repeated to separate all the liquids !in the mixture.
Chromatography
Yellow Yellow Blue Green Blue
This technique is called paper chromatography. The mixture (in this case dots of ink from two different green pens)! is put on a filter paper. The bottom edge of the filter paper is then dipped in a suitable solvent and the solvent is allowed to creep up the filter paper. (Its as if you dipped a tiny corner of a paper towel into a puddle of water the water would creep up the paper towel if you gave it enough time). As the solvent rises up the filter paper, !the individual dyes within the green ink spots are separated !and different dyes travel different distances up the paper. ! (The component that is most soluble in the solvent follows it up the paper the most; the component that is least soluble in the solvent follows it up the least). The solvent itself travels furthest up the filter paper !leaving a line called the solvent front. In the above example the green ink spots each have the same blue dye !(because they have travelled the same distance)! but different yellow dyes !(because they have travelled a different distance).
Sedimentation/Decanting
Sedimentation is the process by which insoluble heavy particles in a liquid are allowed to settle down. This is a simple process that most people employ at home. For example, suppose you are making some tea and have boiled the water and added the tealeaves into the water. Then you realize that you cannot find the strainer. What would you do? Set the tea with the leaves aside for some time. The tealeaves begin to settle down. This settling down of the particles in lower part of the container is called sedimentation. Another example of sedimentation is the settling of mud particles in water. Sedimentation is typically used if the insoluble solid has a different density than the liquid.
Decantation is the process by which, a clear liquid obtained after sedimentation is transferred into another container, without disturbing the settled particles. After the tealeaves have settled down, the clear tea from the top can be poured into a cup. This transfer of the clear tea is called decantation.

Separation Techniques

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Separation of Mixtures

Yellow Yellow Blue Green Blue

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