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Mixtures

A mixture is a combination of two or more elements or compounds in any proportion so that the components do not lose their identity. Air is an example of a mixture (several gases mix to form air). Mixtures are of two types, homogeneous and heterogeneous. Homogeneous mixtures have the same composition throughout the sample. The components of such mixtures cannot be seen under a powerful microscope. They are also called solutions. Examples of homogeneous mixtures are air, sea-water, gasoline, brass etc. Heterogeneous mixtures consist of two or more parts (phases), which have different compositions. These mixtures have visible boundaries of separation between the different constituents and can be seen with the naked eye e.g., sand and salt, chalk powder in water etc.

Separation of Mixtures The separation of mixtures into its constituents in a pure state is an important process in chemistry. The constituents of any mixture can be separated on the basis of their differences in their physical and chemical properties e.g., particle size, solubility, effect of heat, acidity or basicity etc. Some of the methods for separation of mixtures are: Sedimentation or Decantation method

Aim: To separate the mixture of coarse particles of a solid from a liquid e.g., muddy river water. Principle: The coarse particles of the solid being heavier than the liquid (usually water), settle down due to gravity. The clear upper layer of the liquid is then gently poured out into another container. Settling down of the coarse particles due to the effect of gravity is called sedimentation. The mechanical transfer of the clear upper liquid without disturbing the settled solid particles is called decantation. Process: The mixture is taken in a container and allowed to stand for some time. The solid particles settle down with time. Settling down of the particles leaves the upper layers of the liquid clearer. Bigger particles settle down faster than the finer particles. Sometimes the sedimentation process is hastened by adding a small quantity of 3+ alum. Al ions in alum cause the coagulation of the fine particles by undergoing hydrolysis to Al (OH) 3 that has a strong tendency for adsorption.

Fig: 1.1 - Separation of the coarse particles of a solid from a liquid by sedimentation and decantation Filtration method:

Aim: To separate the insoluble solid component of a mixture from the liquid completely i.e. separating the precipitate (solid phase) from any solution. Principle: The solvent molecules and the molecules/ions present in the solution can pass through the porous membranes while the suspended particles cannot and are retained on the porous membrane. Process: The solution containing the suspended impurities is made to pass through the porous membrane such as filter paper, filter cloth etc. The solvent or solution containing dissolved substances passes through the porous membrane, which is called filtrate. The insoluble solid suspended particles that remain on the porous membrane is termed residue. When the suspended impurities are very fine, a small amount of alum added to the suspension makes filtration faster.

Fig: 1.2 - Separation by filtration Evaporation method :

Aim: To separate a non-volatile soluble salt from a liquid or recover the soluble solid solute from the solution. The solvent is lost into the surroundings. Principle: Liquids evaporate at all temperatures. Evaporation becomes faster at higher temperatures. Process: The solution containing the mixture is taken in a china dish and heated gently. Gradually the solvent evaporates and the solution containing the dissolved solute becomes thicker. The semi-solid mass left on the china dish is slowly heated to dryness.

Fig: 1.3 - Evaporation of a solution Crystallization method :

This method is used to separate a solid compound in pure and geometrical form. A nearly saturated solution of an impure substance is prepared in a hot solvent. The prepared solution is quickly filtered and the filtrate is then

allowed to cool slowly in a china dish. The resulting pure crystals that form are removed with the help of a spatula. They are dried by pressing them between the folds of filter papers and finally put into a desiccator. Sublimation method :

This method is used to separate volatile solids, from a non-volatile solid. The mixture is taken in a china dish covered with a perforated filter paper on which an inverted glass funnel is placed to collect the vapors. Upon heating, the substance vaporizes and gets deposited on the walls of the funnel. The non-volatile substances are left in the dish. Distillation method :

Distillation is used for separating the constituents of a liquid mixture, which differ in their boiling points. Depending upon the difference in the boiling points of the constituents, different types of distillation like fractional distillation, steam distillation etc. are employed. Magnetic Separation Method :

Aim : To separate a magnetic component from a mixture containing non- magnetic components. Principle :The magnetic component of the mixture is separated with the help of the magnetic attraction. Process : A magnet is moved over the mixture containing the magnetic substance e.g., iron filings. These get attracted to the magnet. The process is repeated until the magnetic material is completely separated from the mixture.

Fig: 1.4 - Separation of a magnetic substance by a magnet Gravity method:

Aim :To separate mixtures in which components have different densities. Principle : Particles with higher density settle to the bottom while the lighter particles are separated through various processes such as winnowing (grain separation) and washing (panning of gold in the river bed).. Process : Riverbed sand containing fine particles of gold is repeatedly washed in a pan with flowing water. Gold particles settle to the bottom of the pan because of higher density while lighter sand particles are washed over the edge of the pan. Solvent Extraction Method :

Organic compounds, which are easily soluble in organic solvents but insoluble or immiscible with water forming two separate layers, can be easily separated. The aqueous solution of the mixture is mixed with a small quantity of organic solvent in a separating funnel. The separating funnel is stoppered and shaken strongly. It is allowed to stand for some time. The organic liquid and water form separate layers, which are collected by opening the stopcock. The aqueous layer is again transferred to the separating funnel. The process is repeated with more organic solvent. Chromatography

This technique is based on the differential adsorption of various components of a mixture on a suitable adsorbent called the stationary phase while the liquid in which the substance is dissolved is called the mobile or moving phase. Depending on the nature of the two phases there are various types of chromatography. In the method of adsorption chromatography used in column chromatography the adsorbent alumina is packed in a column, which acts as a stationary phase. The mixture is dissolved in a suitable solvent and the solution is poured on top of this column. The mixture moves down and the different components of the mixture get adsorbed in different strengths on the alumina surface. The adsorbed components are then eluted out by the mobile phase (solvent). This project experiment is suitable for secondary school pupils, aged 12-13. It includes illustration of various separating techniques, question for students and an example of experimental worksheet. Mixtures can be separated into their constituents by using physical methods (i.e. no chemical reaction involved). Separation techniques are physical methods. Which technique to use depends on the different properties of the constituents. That is, different states, solubility, boiling and melting points. Below lists some of the most common separation techniques: Chromatography - To separate different colored dyes. The dyes travel up the chromatography paper at different distances before they cannot remain in solution. The more soluble dyes move further up than the less soluble ones, hence separating from each other. Distillation - to separate and collect a liquid from a solution of a soluble solid. The solution is heated in a flask until the liquid boils. The vapor produced passes into the condenser where it is cooled and condenses to a liquid. The pure liquid (distillate) is collected in a beaker. Evaporation - This method is suitable to separate a soluble solid from a liquid. If the solution is heated, the liquid evaporates leaving the solid behind. Fractional Distillation - This is a special type of distillation used to separate a mixture of liquids. Different liquids boil at different temperatures. When heated, they boil off and condense at different times. The apparatus features a fractionating column, which ensures that only the liquid boils at its boiling point will pass into the condenser. Filtration - To separate an insoluble solid from a liquid. The solid remains in the filter paper and the liquid goes through the paper into the beaker.

Some of the example mixtures that can be separated using the above mentioned techniques: (1) separating dyes in inks, or chlorophyll in plants (ethanol as solvent) - chromatography; (2) separating sand from water - filtration; (3) separating ethanol and water - fractional distillation; (4) separating water from ink - simple distillation; (5) separating salt from water - evaporation

SEPARATING MIXTURES
components in a mixture retain their identities

exploit properties that distinguish the components to separate mixtures Some manufacturers add iron filings to cereal to increase its iron content! The bits of iron will stick to a magnet, but the cereal won't. So you can easily separate the mixture by stirring a bar magnet through a slurry of water and finely crushed cereal. the more similar the properties are, the more difficult it is to separate them Many elements occur in forms with slightly different masses. For example, uranium occurs as uranium-235, which can be used to construct atomic bombs, and uranium-238, which can't. The two are very difficult to separate because they are nearly identical otherwise. The technical difficulty in separating this mixture is one of the factors that have limited the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

basic strategies o phase conversion: convert components of the mixture into other forms that are easy to isolate o phase transfer: add a new phase that collects some components from the mixture, but not others basis for separation phase transfer to a solid surface apply this technique to: liquid or gaseous mixtures that contain at least one component that adsorbs liquid or gaseous solutions that contain several components with differing affinities for the stationary phase

technique adsorption / desorption

chromatography

phase transfer from a mobile mixture to a stationary phase

condensation

phase separation by condensing gases in gaseous mixtures containing at least the mixture to liquids one gas with a much higher boiling point than the others phase transfer through a porous membrane that allows some molecules to pass through, but not others gases with faster molecules flow through tiny pinholes faster than gases with slow molecules soluble components can be washed away, leaving behind insoluble components (phase transfer to a washing solvent) separate a metal from impurities by dissolving it and then plating it onto an electrode collect solid particles on a filter dense components sink, and lighter solutions containing small molecules mixed with very large molecules gaseous mixtures containing gases with different molecular weights mixtures of solids with different solubilitys

dialysis

effusion

dissolution(washing, solvent extraction)

electro refining

solid mixtures with a metal as one component heterogeneous mixture containing a solid phase heterogeneous mixture with phases

filtration floatation

ones float ion exchange

with different densities

ions in the mixture bind to surfaces with solutions containing ions oppositely charged sites (phase transfer to an ion exchange resin) convert solutes to an easily separated solid form bubble mixture through a solution that selectively absorbs a component (phase transfer from gas to solution) solutions containing a solute that can be precipitated gaseous mixtures containing a solute that can be selectively absorbed by a scrubbing solution

precipitation scrubbing

stripping

a gas bubbled through the mixture a liquid mixture containing at least carries off the most volatile components one volatile component (phase transfer from solution to gas)

volatilization (drying, distillation, sublimation) Adsorption and desorption

components with widely differing volatility can be driven out of the mixture by heating (phase change from solid or liquid to gas)

a mixture containing components with differing volatility

some solids bind gases and organic materials to their surfaces, removing them from mixtures adsorbed gases or liquids can recovered from the adsorbent material by washing with a solvent examples o activated charcoal adsorbs many gases and liquids used as a "universal antidote" for poisoning used in water purifiers (removes particulates, lead, copper, mercury, chlorine, hypochlorite, organics) used to adsorb drugs from the blood of overdose victims o silica gel absorbs moisture from air

Condensation cooling a vapor causes components with the highest boiling points to condense as liquids first examples o separating steam and air o separating oxygen and nitrogen in air

Dialysis a semipermeable membrane allows some components in a mixture through, but not others How does the membrane distinguish components? o some membranes act as a "molecular sieve" that discriminates between large and small molecules o some membranes dissolve one component better than others o development of new membranes is an active area of research in industry and government components flow spontaneously from the high concentration to low concentration side o pressure applied to the low concentration side can stop or even reverse this flow (reverse

osmosis) examples o purification of blood in dialysis machines o purification of seawater by reverse osmosis o separation of pollutants from drinking water

Effusion use porous membranes to separate light gases from heavy ones o average speed of gas molecules depends on the masses of their molecules o heavy molecules in a mixture move slower on average than light ones o gases made of light molecules diffuse through pores in membranes faster than heavy molecules differences from dialysis o membrane is permeable, not semipermeable: all gas molecules in the mixture can pass through it o size of molecules isn't usually important: pores in membrane are much larger than gas molecules o ...molecular velocity (and so, molecular mass) is the basis for separation, not size examples o separating helium from oxygen o separating uranium isotopes as volatile UF 6

Dissolution (washing) separate solids by washing away those that are soluble examples o separating sand and salt by water washing o separating feldspars from quartz in rocks by washing with hot concentrated phosphoric acid o separating organic stains from clothing by washing with organic solvents (dry cleaning)

Electro refining used to separate metals from impurities strategy o dissolve the impure metal o plate it on an electrode, using a strong electric current o pure metal deposits on the electrode, and the impurities stay in solution

Filtration pass a mixture that contains solid particles through a porous filter if pores are smaller than particles, solid particles stay on filter and liquid/gaseous components pass through often used after separation by precipitation

Ion exchange used to separate ions from mixtures pass the mixture over a surface that is covered with charged sites some ions stick to the charged sites examples

o Precipitation

water deionization

precipitation is the conversion of a solute to solid form by chemical or physical change solids are then separated by filtration or floatation examples o separating mud and bacteria from water a gooey aluminum hydroxide precipitate is formed in the water to carry particulates and bacteria to the bottom of a vat clean water is drawn off the top o separating sulfate ions from water by adding barium ions barium ion + sulfate = insoluble barium sulfate o water softening with washing soda carbonate + calcium ion = insoluble calcium carbonate

Scrubbing scrubbing is bubbling a gas stream through a solution that traps some components examples o CO2 can be separated from air by bubbling it through a solution of barium hydroxide o H2S can be removed from air by bubbling it through a zinc acetate solution

Solvent extraction a component moves into a solvent shaken with the mixture Works best with solvents that dissolve only one component Solvent extraction can be used to extract vanillin from vanilla beans. Shaking the beans with an organic solvent like chloroform transfers organic compounds (including the vanillin) to the chloroform. Shaking the chloroform with a sodium hydroxide solution transfers the vanillin into the sodium hydroxide solution.

Stripping a stream of gas bubbled through the mixture will carry off the most volatile components

Blowing air through a straw in a glass of soda will cause it to go flat, because the air carries off the volatile carbon dioxide. volatile components can be reclaimed from the gas by scrubbing

Volatilization heating a mixture can cause low-boiling components to volatilize (vaporize) several variations distillation is collecting and condensing volatilized components Alcohol can be separated from fermented corn mash by heating the mash to vaporize the alcohol. The vapor is collected and passed through coils of copper tubing, where it cools and condenses as a liquid once again. Moonshiners sometimes used old car radiators for the

condensation step; the soldered joints added a toxic quantity of lead to the shine! drying is complete volatilization of some components in the mixture Separation of water from clothes on a clothesline is one obvious example. The separation of salt from seawater using evaporating pools is another. Sublimation is volatilization of a solid (without melting!) Dry ice (solid carbon dioxide) is probably the most familiar example of a solid that sublimes. But water ice can also be converted directly into water vapor without melting, at low pressure. Snow on mountain peaks disappears without moistening the soil. Separation by sublimation is sometimes called 'freeze drying'. Instant coffee is manufactured by freeze drying. (Boiling the coffee destroys the delicate molecules that give coffee its flavor, and so does exposure to air after a certain time, so distillation or simple drying isn't used). Fresh coffee is frozen to form a mixture of ice and coffee crystals. The pressure over the mixture is lowered so that the ice sublimates, leaving the coffee crystals behind.

Separation of Mixtures
Mixtures are all able to be separated by exploiting some physical property. No chemical changes need be involved, so the substances will retain their chemical identity throughout the separation process. I. Hand Separation An example which could be separated by hand might be a dry mixture of salt and sand. Manually picking out the sand does not change the chemical identity of the salt or the sand. Even though this technique is crude, it does show up in making an important discovery. It was the discovery of optical isomers by Louis Pasteur in 1844, the first major discovery of his scientific career. He was able to separate what had been thought to be one compound into two. He carefully crystallized the compound and, the key insight; saw that that it crystallized into right-handed and left-handed crystals. He able to pick out the opposite handed crystals and demonstrate that solutions of each rotated polarized light in opposite directions. It turns out, for a number of reasons, that Pasteur was very lucky. However, notice that he DID see that luck had presented something important to him and he was able to follow it through. II. Filtration Filtration is a bit more sophistication than manually picking out stuff. Mix the sand/salt with water. The salt dissolves, the sand does not. Pour through a filter to separate the sand, and then heat the salt water to drive off the water. All physical changes. Often, in chemistry, a reaction will be carried out and a solid material formed where there was none before. Filtration is the most common technique to remove the solid material.

Filters range widely in sophistication. Common ordinary filter paper (as might be used to make coffee) is inexpensive. The filter used in an oil filter for a car costs a bit more and so on. There are special application filters in various areas, both chemistry and other, where the filters are quite expensive. Sometimes, the solid portions are what you want and sometimes it is the material you discard, keeping what passed through the filter. In 1943, Glenn Seaborg discovered element 94, later named plutonium. He and his coworkers carried out a series of steps, both chemical and physical, to purify the plutonium, one of which was a filtration. They kept the solid and discarded what passed through the filter. Sometime later (2-3 years? I'd have to check), Seaborg discovered that elements 95 and 96 were also in the samples prepared. However, they were soluble, stayed in solution, passed through the filter and remained undiscovered due to the then single-minded focus on plutonium. (Plutonium was used to build the first atomic bomb and was also used in the bomb dropped on Nagasaki, three days after a uranium bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.) III. Distillation Imagine a solution of alcohol and water. Heat it. The lower boiling component (alcohol) will come off first, so you hold the temperature until all the alcohol is gone. You've separated the water and the alcohol with only physical changes involved. (The actual technique is a bit more sophisticated, but you get the idea.) IV. There are more There are a number of other separation techniques which exploit physical properties. Examples include: Centrifugation chromatography gaseous diffusion zone refining

Separating mixtures
Something is a MIXTURE if it contains two (or more) substances that are not chemically joined together. The substances in a mixture can often be easily separated from one another. A PURE substance only contains one material and so cannot be separated in any way (unless a chemical reaction takes place) Different ways of separating mixtures 1 A magnet can be used to separate IRON from SAND. How it works: The magnet sticks to the iron but not to the sand 3. Filtering (filtration) can be used to separate a solid (or suspension) from a liquid. How it works: The liquid (and anything dissolved in the liquid) passes through holes in the filter paper but the solid particles are too big and get stuck.

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Example: Filtration would be used to separate the dirt from some salty water. 4. Evaporation can be used to separate a dissolved SOLUTE from a SOLUTION Example: Evaporation would be used to obtain some pure salt from salty water. How it works: When salty water is warmed the water evaporates leaving behind crystals of salt. MAKING ROCK SALT PURE Rock salt is a MIXTURE of several substances. In order to make pure salt it is necessary to remove the INSOLUBLE dirt from the SOLUBLE salt. [Note: The method described below could be used to separate any two substances when one of them can dissolve in water and the other cannot] 1. CRUSH the rock salt using a mortar and pestle. This makes the salt dissolve more easily. 2. STIR the crushed salt into a beaker of warm water. The salt will DISSOLVE into the water but the dirt, which is insoluble in water, will not. 3. FILTER the mixture. The dirt will get caught in the filter paper as a residue and the clear SALTY WATER will drip through and form the filtrate. 4. Warm the filtrate in an evaporating basin. The water will EVAPORATE leaving behind pure salt crystals. The heat is stopped BEFORE all of the water has evaporated. This makes the salt more pure and helps prevent the evaporating basin from cracking... The last little bit of salty water is filtered out Summary of methods used to separate a mixture PROCESS Filtration Evaporation Fractional distillation What it is used for Used for separating a solid or suspension from a liquid Used to obtain the solute from a solution Used to separate one liquid from a mixture of different liquids that have different boiling points. Examples E.g. separating SAND from water. e.g. for obtaining SALT from salty water e.g. for obtaining pure water from sea water e.g. i. obtaining ALCOHOL (bp78C) from wine. ii. Oxygen or nitrogen is obtained from air (a mixture of different gasses) by the fractional distillation of liquid air. Chromatography Used to separate out one color from a mixture of e.g. for separating out the colors in black ink colors

Simple distillation Used to obtain the solvent from a solution

Making water pure Water can be purified by a process called DISTILLATION. e.g.: If we wanted to make some PURE WATER from SEA WATER we would distill the sea water.

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Apparatus for obtaining pure water from sea water. This apparatus would be used by a pupil but would not produce very much pure water.

The water in the flask EVAPORATES and turns into steam. Anything dissolved in the water cannot evaporate and so remains in the flask. The liquid that condenses in the test tube is known as the distillate The beaker of cold water helps keep the test tube cold so more steam condenses This method to make pure water shown above is ok but a more efficient method is shown below: The steam CONDENSES in the delivery tube and turns back into water which collects in the test tube.

The apparatus above can be improved by using a Liebig condenser. This helps the steam cool down. The flask also hold more water than the boiling tube

The Liebig condenser helps cool down the steam (notice which way the cooling water flows through the Liebig condenser) How to tell if a liquid is pure or contains a solute: Place one or two drops of the filtrate on to a clean watch glass (or microscope slide) Let the water evaporate and see if there is any residue. If there is it means that some of the solid did dissolve.

Words to know:

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Mixture: Something that can be SEPARATED into two (or more) different substances. E.g. air, sea water, earth, orange juice. Pure: A material is pure if it contains only one chemical substance and so cannot be separated further Filtrate: The clear liquid that has been filtered. Residue: The solid left behind after an experiment (e.g. the solid left in the filter paper). Filtration: The process used to separate a solid (or suspension) from a liquid. Suspension: Very fine particles of solid mixed with a liquid. If the solid is in suspension the water will often look cloudy. E.g. flour and water shaken together. NOTE: in a suspension the solid has not dissolved but in a solution it has. Soluble: Can dissolve Insoluble: Cannot dissolve Solvent: The liquid that is used to make a solution Solute: A substance that has been dissolved in a solution.

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