CHAPTER SIX Lets SE-PA-RA-TE!!!

Learning Objectives You will learn different methods of separating mixtures such as filtration, evaporation, crystallisation, distillation and chromatography some applications of separation techniques in everyday life and in industry about the techniques involved in obtaining pure water from sea water

Water & Alcohol

Sand & Salt

7.1

Mixtures

Substances can be divided into 2 groups:

ALL SUBSTANCES

pure substances (one substance)

mixtures (2 or more substances not joined together chemically)

element or compound

elements

compounds

both elements and compounds

Separation of Mixtures
Many mixtures contain useful substances. However, the substances have to be separated before they can be used. Some physical methods commonly used are: magnetic attraction filtration evaporation crystallization distillation chromatography The method used depends on the properties of the substances in the mixture.

Magnetic Attraction
Iron and steel have magnetic properties. Thus a magnet can be used to separate iron (or steel) from non-magnetic substances in a mixture.

crane a powerful magnet moves over the mixture to separate any pieces of iron from a pile of scrap metal

Introductory PoU: Activity 1

I Think

Now I See

Now I Wonder .

Introductory PoU: Activity 1

Can sugar be obtained from the solution by evaporation? ..

Then how do we separate sugar from its solution?

Separating soluble solid from liquid Crystallisation

When a substance decomposes on heating or can lose its water of crystallisation, we do not evaporate it to dryness.
sugar decomposes on heating

Instead, we crystallise it.

Copyright 2006-2011 Marshall Cavendish International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

How do we purify by crystallisation?

In crystallisation, water is removed by heating the solution. Heating is stopped at the stage when a hot saturated solution is formed. If the resulting solution is allowed to cool to room temperature, the dissolved solid will be formed as pure crystals.

Copyright 2006-2011 Marshall Cavendish International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Filtration
Filtration is used to separate a mixture of solid and liquid where the solid is insoluble in the liquid. An example of mixture that can be separated by filtration is water and sand. Can you think more another example of mixture that can be separated by filtration?

Filtration Experimental Set-up

The diagram shows the experimental set-up to separate a mixture of sand and water.
filter paper
residue (sand)

mixture of sand and water filter funnel filtrate (water)

The solid left on the filter paper is called the residue. Hence sand is the residue. The liquid that drains through the filter is called the filtrate. Hence water is the filtrate.

Evaporation
Evaporation is used to separate a solid from a solution where the solid is soluble in the liquid.

An example of using evaporation to separate mixture is obtaining salt from salt solution.
evaporating dish

salt solution

water (water bath)

heat

Evaporation
Heat the beaker of water. The salt solution in the evaporating dish will slowly dry up as the heating proceeds. We say that the water in the salt solution is evaporating. If we continue heating until all the water in the salt solution has evaporated, solid salt will be left in the evaporating dish as residue.

Question: Why do we use a water bath instead of heating the salt solution directly? To prevent the solid from decomposing or burning.
heat

Distillation
Distillation is used to separate a liquid from a mixture. It involves the 2 processes: boiling and condensation. Distillation is used to obtain pure water from sea water. It is also used to obtain water from a mixture of ink and water. Distillation produces distilled or pure water water with almost no dissolved substances (or mineral salts).

steam
boiling condensation

solution

pure water

Distillation Experimental Set-up

thermometer distilling flask sea water porcelain chips
heat
tap water out

condenser

droplets of water
tap water in

pure water (distillate)

1. The liquid mixture is placed in the distilling flask. During distillation, the liquid mixture is heated until it boils. 2. The thermometer shows the temperature of the vapour coming out boiling point of the liquid.

Distillation Experimental Procedures

3. The condenser cools and condenses the vapour into a liquid. Water for the condenser must enter the condenser from the lower inlet and go out from the upper outlet. This is to ensure that the condenser is filled with water constantly and effective condensation takes place along it.
4. Liquid collected in a conical flask. This liquid is called distillate which is chemically pure because it does not contain any dissolved substances. Question: What is the purpose of the porcelain chips? To smoothen the boiling process OR To ensure smooth boiling of the mixture.
Short Video on Distallation:

Fractional Distillation
Fractional distillation is distillation that is used to separate a mixture of two or more liquids which have different boiling points.
Fractional distillation is used to obtain alcohol from a mixture of alcohol and water. Oil refineries use fractional distillation to separate petroleum into products, such as petrol, kerosene and diesel fuel.

Chromatography
Chromatography (writing with colour) is used to separate coloured components in a mixture. The different coloured components are separated based on their different rates of movement in a solvent (alcohol) over an absorbent material (i.e. filter paper). Some examples of its uses: to find out the colours in ink to find out the coloured substances used in food products such as sweets and canned vegetables to separate the pigments in flowers to detect drugs in urine samples to detect the type of ink used in forged cheques

Paper Chromatography
Different coloured spots are obtained at end of experiment

spots of ink solvent

1. 2. 3. 4.

A small drop of ink is put on one end of the chromatography paper. The end of the paper is placed in a solvent (ethanol). The different dyes in the ink mixture travel at different rates along the paper. At the end of experiment, different coloured spots are obtained. The paper with different coloured spots is called a chromatogram.

Paper Chromatography Why do the different dyes travel at different rates along the paper? It is due to the differences in solubility of the dyes in the solvent.
-The more soluble the dye is in the solvent, the faster it moves up the chromatography paper. -The less soluble the dye is in the solvent, the slower it moves up the chromatography paper.

Paper Chromatography
State two factors that affect the rate of movement of different components of the liquid mixture (eg. ink) up the chromatography paper? a) Solubilities of the component in the solvent b) the absorption of the components by the paper.

List 3 precautions we should take when conducting this experiment.

1)Spot of X applied on the chromatography paper must be small and concentrated. 2) The spot of X cannot be immersed in the solvent. 3) The apparatus must not be disturbed.

What is Reverse Osmosis?

Reverse osmosis is used for desalination Sea water is pre-treated to remove debris and contaminants It is then pumped at high pressure through partially permeable membranes This removes all traces of bacteria, viruses, chemicals and dissolved minerals

Pure drinking water from seawater

In Singapore pure drinking water has always been a scarce resource. One way to solve this problem is to use desalination. Desalination is a process where salt from the seawater is removed so that the water collected is suitable for drinking. Two main desalination methods distillation and reverse osmosis. NEWater is obtained by reverse osmosis. http://www.pub.gov.sg/NEWater_files/newater_tech/index.html

Reverse Osmosis

Singapore has a limited water supply so desalination is one of the ways in which we can solve our water supply problem