SEPARATION

TECHNIQUES
 REVIEW

In the diagram on the right,

determine, which letters
represent elements, compounds
and mixtures
 MIXTURES

● A mixture consists of two or more elements or compounds that are physically

mixed together, they are not chemically combined
● Each mixture must be at least two parts, which may be solid, liquid or gas
● There are a number of ways in which the three states can be combined

For example above, salt (NaCl) in a solid state is mixed with water (H 2O) in a
liquid state.
 ● Generally, the solid which
MIXTURES: SOLIDS dissolves in a liquid is called a
AND LIQUIDS solute
● The liquid in which a solid
dissolves is called a solvent.
● Water is the most common
solvent.
● A solute dissolves in a solvent to
make a solution.

For example on the left, salt

(NaCl) is the solute which
dissolves in water (H2O), which is
the solvent, to make a salt-water
solution
 SATURATED SOLUTION

For each solute and solvent, there is a

limit to the mass of solute that will
dissolve in a particular volume of the
solvent. When no more solute will
dissolve, we say that the solution is a
saturated solution.
MIXTURES: SOLIDS AND LIQUIDS

● In some mixtures, the solute and the solvent

are completely mixed to become one single
state (solution) such as saltwater.
● A substance that dissolves in a solvent is
said to be soluble.

For example, salt is soluble in water

MIXTURES: SOLIDS AND LIQUIDS

● Can have mixtures, where the two states do

not completely mix i.e. the solute does not
dissolve completely in the solvent.
● A substance that does not dissolve in a
solvent is said to be insoluble.

For example when sand is mixed in water, it

does not dissolve because it is insoluble in
water
MIXTURES: LIQUIDS

● Liquids are able to mix with other

liquids.
● Liquids which are able to mix
together are called miscible liquids.

For example water and ethanol.

● Liquids which do not mix together

are called immiscible liquids

For example water and oil

 DO NOW:

● What term is given to a substance that can dissolve in a particular liquid?

● In a solution, what term is given to the liquid?

● In a solution, what term is given to the solid that has dissolved?

● What term is given to a solution that contains as much solute as can be

dissolved in a solvent?

● For most solid solutes, what happens to the solubility as the temperature
increases?
 MIXTURES: SEPARATION TECHNIQUES

● Mixtures of impure substances are not chemically bonded (joined) to each

other so they can be separated by physical techniques.
● The way in which different substances in a mixture are separated is called a
process. There are a number of different processes used for separation.
● The type of technique used depends on two things:
1. The state of the substance - is it a solid, liquid or gas
2. The physical properties of the substance such as boiling point and
solubility
 SEPARATION TECHNIQUES

● The separation technique or method chosen for purification depends upon

the type of mixture.
● Separation techniques, depending on the state of matter which the solute and
solvent are in, include:
■ Filtration
■ Crystallisation
■ Distillation
■ Fractional Distillation
■ Paper Chromatography
FILTRATION

● Filtration is used to separate an

undissolved solid from a mixture of the
solid and a liquid (a solution)

For example sand from a mixture of sand

and water. Centrifugation can also be
used for this mixture
FILTRATION: METHOD

1. Filter paper is placed in a filter funnel

above another beaker
2. Mixture of insoluble solid and liquid is
poured into the filter funnel
3. Filter paper will only allow small liquid
particles to pass through as the filtrate
4. Solid particles are too large to pass
through the filter paper so will stay
behind as a residue
 CRYSTALLISATION

● Crystallisation is used to separate a dissolved solid from a mixture of the

solid and a liquid (a solution)
● Physical property being used here is solubility, where the solute (solid) is much
more soluble in hot solvent than in cold.
 CRYSTALLISATION

● Another, physical property being used here is boiling point, where the solvent
will evaporate due to having a higher boiling point than the solute

For example copper sulphate from a solution of copper (II) sulphate in water
 CRYSTALLISATION: METHOD

1. The solution is heated, allowing the solvent to evaporate to leave a saturated

solution behind
2. Test if the solution is saturated by dipping a clean, dry, cold glass rod into the
solution. If the solution is saturated, crystals will form on the glass rod
 CRYSTALLISATION: METHOD CONT…

3. The saturated solution is allowed to cool slowly and solids will come out of the
solution as the solubility decreases, and crystals will grow
4. Crystals are collected by filtering the solution
 CRYSTALLISATION: METHOD CONT…

5. Crystals are then washed with cold, distilled water to remove impurities and
allowed to dry
 ● Distillation used to separate
DISTILLATION a liquid and soluble solid
from a solution (e.g. water
from a solution of
saltwater) or a pure liquid
from a mixture of liquids
● Distillation involves the
physical property of boiling
point where the dissolved
solute has a much higher
boiling point than the
solvent.
DISTILLATION: METHOD

1. The solution is heated.

2. The pure water evaporates
producing a vapour which
rises through the neck of the
round-bottomed flask
3. The vapour passes through
the condenser where it
cools and condenses,
turning into pure liquid H2O.
DISTILLATION: METHOD CONT…

3. The pure water in liquid

form is collected into a
beaker or conical flask.
4. After all the water is
evaporated from the
solution, only the solid
solute is left behind in the
conical flask which originally
had the solution.
FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION

● Fractional distillation is used to

separate two or more liquids that
are miscible with one another. For
example ethanol and water from a
mixture of the two.
● Fractional Distillation also involves
the physical property of boiling point
where one liquid will have a lower
boiling point compared to the other
liquid.
FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION: METHOD

1. The solution is heated to the

temperature of the substance with
the lowest boiling point

For example, for water and ethanol,

ethanol has a boiling point of 78 ºC
and water of 100 ºC. The mixture is
heated until it reaches 78 ºC.
FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION: METHOD

2. The substance with the lowest

boiling point will rise and evaporate
first.
3. Vapours will pass through a
condenser, where they cool and
condense, turning into a liquid that
will be collected in a beaker

At 78 ºC the ethanol boils and distills

out of the mixture and condenses
into the beaker
FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION: METHOD

4. All of the substance is evaporated

and collected, leaving behind the
other components (s) of the mixture

When the temperature starts to

increase to 100 ºC heating should be
stopped. Water and ethanol are now
separated,
 ADDITIONAL VIDEOS

❏ GCSE Science Revision Chemistry "Filtration and Crystallisation"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ka6o5VCPRF8
❏ GCSE Science Revision Chemistry "Simple Distillation"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIMtFj2gPs8
❏ GCSE Science Revision Chemistry "Fractional Distillation"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86WY2mV9jiU
CHROMATOGRAPHY
 PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY

● Paper chromatography is used to separate mixtures

of soluble substances. These are often coloured
substances such as food colourings, inks, dyes or
plant pigments.
● This technique is used to separate substances that
have different solubilities in a given solvent
 PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY

Chromatography relies on two different 'phases':

● The stationary phase, which in paper
chromatography is very uniform, absorbent paper
● The mobile phase is the solvent that moves through
the paper, carrying different substances with it
 PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY

● The different dissolved substances in a mixture are

attracted to the two phases in different proportions.
● This causes them to move at different rates through
the paper.
PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY: METHOD

● A pencil line is drawn on

chromatography paper
and spots of the sample
are placed on it.
● Pencil is used for this as
ink would run into the
chromatogram along
with the samples
PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY: METHOD CONT…

● The paper is then

lowered into the solvent
container
● Make sure that the pencil
line sits above the level of
the solvent, so the
samples don’t wash into
the solvent container
PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY: METHOD CONT…

● The solvent travels up the

paper by capillary action,
taking some of the
coloured substances with it
PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY: METHOD CONT…

● Different substances have

different solubilities so will
travel at different rates,
causing the substances to
spread apart
● Those substances with
higher solubility will travel
further than the others
INTERPRETING A CHROMATOGRAM

● Separation by
chromatography produces a
chromatogram.
● A paper chromatogram can
be used to distinguish
between pure and impure
substances
INTERPRETING A CHROMATOGRAM

● A pure substance produces

one spot on the
chromatogram

For example, in the

chromatograph on the left,
the red, blue and yellow inks
are pure substances, thus
producing only one spot
each.
INTERPRETING A
CHROMATOGRAM ● An impure substance
produces two or more spots

For example, in the

chromatograph on the left,
the brown ink is a mixture of
the red, blue and yellow inks
are pure substances, thus
producing three spots, which
are the same heights as the
pure substances
CALCULATING RF VALUES

● Retention factor Rf values can be

used to identify unknown
chemicals if they can be
compared to a range of
reference substances.
● Rf values are calculated using the
following formula:

Rf = distance moved by solute ÷

distance moved by solvent
 ● In order to calculate Rf values, a
CALCULATING RF line must be drawn across the
chromatogram to show how far
VALUES the solvent travelled. This line is
known as the solvent front
● The baseline is the line at the
bottom of the paper on which
the samples were placed at the
beginning of the experiment
● The distance between the
baseline and the solvent front is
the distance moved by the
solvent
CALCULATING RF VALUES

● Rf values vary from 0 (the

substance is not attracted at all
to the mobile phase) to 1 (the
substance is not attracted at all
to the stationary phase).
● The closer the Rf value is to 1,
the more soluble is that
component in the solvent
● Rf values have no units
CALCULATING RF VALUES: EXAMPLE ONE

Calculate the Rf values for substances A,

B and C.

Rf (A) = 1.5 / 10 = 0.15

Rf (B) = 3 / 10 = 0.30

Rf (C) = 7 / 10 = 0.70

As the Rf value for substance C lies closer

to 1, the more soluble substance C is in
the solvent used in this experiment.
CALCULATING RF VALUES: EXAMPLE
CALCULATING RF VALUES: PRACTICE
A prepared sample solution (A+B) is applied on the
chromatogram paper and run through a mobile
phase.

1. Calculate the distance travelled by the solvent

2. Calculate the Rf value of analyte A
3. Calculate the Rf value of analyte B
4. Based on your calculations, which analyte (A
or B) is more soluble in the solvent
5. Give a reason for your answer in Question 4
1.What are some common examples of mixtures and how are they formed?
2.How can you separate a mixture of sand and salt?
3.What is chromatography and how can it be used to separate a mixture?
4.What is distillation and how can it be used to separate a mixture of
liquids?
5.How can you separate a mixture of iron filings and sulfur?
6.How can you separate a mixture of oil and water?
7.What is filtration and how can it be used to separate a mixture?
8.How can you separate a mixture of sugar and water?
9.How can you separate a mixture of ethanol and water?
10.What is the process of centrifugation and how can it be used to separate
a mixture?
 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

❏ Chromatography

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLw9RxKY4PU
❏ GCSE Science Revision Chemistry "Chromatography"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hndJf_5aB9I
❏ GCSE Science Revision Chemistry "Required Practical 6: Chromatography"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8i4QYncQxI