Activity No.

7
Sublimation

Group No. 2
Hajan, Abdulla
Muhiddini, Nur-Zhiana
Ommar, Jurmina
Talib, Megawati
1
Introduction
Sublimation is defined as the change or transition from the
solid phase into the gas phase without entering the liquid
phase.
Naphthalene powder is composed of two benzene rings
sharing two adjacent carbon atoms. Naphthalene is most
commonly known as the primary ingredient in mothballs.

Sodium sulfate is a salt form of sulfuric acid an

inorganic compound that has a molecular formula of
Na2SO4.

Congo red is an organic compound that is water-

soluble and yields to a red colloidal solution.
2
Objectives of the Experiment
1) To separate the three components (naphthalene,
sodium sulfate, and congo red) of the mixture
through the process of sublimation and other
separation techniques;
2) To describe the physical properties of the
sublimate and residues collected; and
3) To determine the indicators of the completeness of
separation of the mixture

3
Procedure
Naphthalene + congo red + sodium sulfate mixture
-place inside the fume hood
-cover with funnel and filter paper
-heat

Residue Sublimate
-place in beaker -collect a portion and
-add 15-mL water add 5-mL hot water
-heat -add drops of BaCl2
-observe results
Heated mixture
-add 1.5 g of activated carbon
-stir and boil for 5 minutes

Boiled mixture
-allow to cool then filter

Filtrate Residue
-evaporate to dryness -observe
Residue
-dissolve in water
-add 1-2 drops of BaCl2
-observe results 4
 Results and Discussion
Table 1. Test for naphthalene, congo red, and sodium chloride separation
Name of Test
Test for the sublimate
1.Small portion of the sublimate
Test for the sublimate
2.Mixture of hot water and
sublimate
Test for Residue
3.Heated mixture
Test for filtrate
4.Small amount of filtrate
5.Residue dissolved in water
Treatment Observation
-dissolve in 5-mL hot -the solid particles, which are the
distilled water sublimate, can be found at the bottom
portion and walls of the test tube; the
compound is insoluble in water
-add a drop of barium -the solution remained clear and the
chloride solid particles also stayed in the
mixture; no reaction happened
-add 1.5g of activated -the filtration left a black, waxy residue
carbon on the filter paper and the filtrate was
-heat for 5 minutes colorless liquid.
-cool and filter
-evaporate to dryness -the filtrate evaporated, leaving some
white residue on the watch glass.
-dissolve in water and add 1- -it produced a slightly milky
2 drops of barium chloride heterogeneous mixture.
5
Conclusion
• Naphthalene was successfully separated from the mixture using the
sublimation technique
• The vaporized compound turned back to its solid form and was tested with
BaCl2 – resulting to no reaction which indicates high purity.
• The sodium sulfate and congo red residues were treated with activated
carbon, and sodium sulfate was extracted through filtration.
• The filtrate was tested with BaCl2 which resulted to white precipitation,
indicating that the separation was successful, and little-to-no errors were
made.

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Question Guide:
1. Describe the physical properties of the sublimate collected.
2. When can sublimation be applied as a process of separation?
3. What is its limitation of this laboratory technique?
4. Which compound in the mixture is the sublimate?
5. Which compound in the mixture is the residue after the a) heating and b)
addition of activated carbon?
6. How is the completeness of separation of naphthalene and NaSO4 be known
with addition of BaCl2 solution?