C4 Separation Techniques - Teacher

Chapter 4
Exploring Diversity of
Matter Using Separation
Techniques
• 4.1 What is the purpose of separation
techniques?
• 4.2 How do we choose the appropriate
separation technique(s)?
• 4.3 How can we apply separation
techniques to obtain potable water in
Singapore?
Chapter 4
Exploring Diversity of Matter Using Separation
Techniques
4.1 Purpose of Separation Techniques

4.2 Separation Techniques
4.3 Obtaining Potable Water
© Assumption English School – Science Department

(Edited based on 2021 LSS syllabus, reference from Marshall Cavendish 2013 version)
4.1 Purpose of Separation Techniques
• The ability to separate mixtures into their

constituents is necessary in order to reduce,
reuse and recycle for sustainable living.
• For example, to boost the supple of water, we
can obtain potable water using separation
techniques.

(Edited based on 2021 LSS syllabus, reference from Marshall Cavendish 2013 version)
4.2 Separation Techniques
Separation Techniques
Magnetic Filtration Evaporation Distillation Paper

attraction chromatography

 2013 Marshall(Edited based on
Cavendish International 2021 Pte
(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
reference from Marshall Cavendish 2013 version)
4.2 Separating Techniques- Magnetic attraction
Magnetic attraction and its applications
• Magnetic attraction is used to separate magnetic

materials from non-magnetic materials.
• Magnetic attraction makes use of the fact that only

some materials are attracted to magnets.
• For example, we can use a magnet to separate a
mixture of sulfur and iron filings.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Magnetic attraction has allowed for quicker and

more efficient separation of magnetic materials from
non-magnetic materials in many industries.
• Here are a few examples of the use of magnetic
attraction in industries:
• salvaging of iron and steel; and
• food processing.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Salvaging of iron and steel
Iron and steel are recovered from junkyards so that these
metals can be recycled since they are limited natural
resources.
When the magnet is switched off,

iron and steel are dropped
into a collection bin.
The metals are then sold and
brought to recycling centres.
A powerful magnet
is used to separate Iron and steel are
iron and steel from other reused in new
materials in a junkyard. objects.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Food processing
• We use magnets to remove harmful objects from food.
During food Food is placed in Removal of metal pieces

processing, metal magnetic separators that keeps the food clean and
pieces may detect and remove any makes it safe to be eaten. The
accidentally get into metal pieces in the food. food is further processed
food products. before being sold in shops.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.2 Separating Techniques- Filtration
Filtrations and its applications

• Filtration is the technique used to separate an
insoluble solid from the liquid in a solid-liquid
mixture.
• Filtration works on the basis that, in a suspension,

the insoluble solids are larger (in size) than the
liquid particles.
• We use filtration to separate insoluble solids from a
suspension.
Can you recall

some examples of
solid-liquid mixtures?

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
A suspension is passed through a filter paper as

shown. The filter paper has tiny pores.
The filter paper has tiny pores that

allow the smaller liquid particles to
pass through while trapping the larger
solid particles. The trapped solid
particles that remain on the filter paper
is called the residue.
The liquid that passes through the filter

paper is called the filtrate.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Filtration has many applications in our everyday lives and

the industrial world.
• Here are a few examples of the use of filtration:
Coffee makers Water treatment plants

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Coffee makers
Filter paper is placed in the The filter paper separates the

filter cone. Water is poured ground coffee from the liquid
into the filter cone. coffee.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Water treatment
• Water from our reservoirs is purified before it can be used
for drinking.
• Filtration is part of the purification process as it is a relatively
cost-saving technique.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Water treatment
Raw water from the reservoir is
treated with chemicals to kill germs
and bacteria.
Water is filtered through layers of

sand beds which contain sand
grains of different sizes.
Solid silt and sand particles are

removed from the water.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Some parts of our bodies also use filtration to control the
types of substances entering and leaving our bodies.
• Is nasal hair necessary? Read the concept cartoon
below, do you agree with Aishah or Ben?

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Our kidneys function as a filter for our blood.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.2 Separating Techniques- Evaporation
Evaporation and its applications
• Evaporation is the technique used to separate

dissolved solids from a solid-liquid mixture.
• Evaporation makes use of the fact that the solvent

in a solution can vapourise at any temperature,
leaving behind a residue of the solid that was
dissolved in the liquid.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
A solution is heated over When the mixture has

a water bath. completely evaporated, no
water is left behind.
The solid left

behind is the
residue.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Production of salt from seawater

• Evaporation can be used to obtain salt from seawater.
• Salt is commonly used as a food preservative or seasoning in
dishes.
Click here to watch a video on

how sea salt is made from
seawater in Hawaii.
How are the holding ponds

containing the seawater
designed in order to maximise
the yield of salt obtained?

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Production of salt from seawater
In some parts of the world, The heat from the sun

where temperatures are evaporates the water, leaving
high, seawater is allowed to the salt behind. The salt is then
flow into large flat pans piled into heaps to dry.
called salt pans.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.2 Separating Techniques- Distillation
Distillation and its applications

• One survival technique involves learning how to obtain
drinking water.
• In this technique, water from the ground evaporates into
water vapour.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Distillation and its applications
• The water vapour condenses on the cool underside of the
plastic sheet, which then collects in the cup.
• The water in the cup is safe for drinking.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Distillation is the technique used to separate a pure

liquid from a solid-liquid or liquid-liquid mixture.
• Distillation involves evaporation and

condensation.
• It works on the basis that when a liquid evaporates
from a solution, it will condense to form a pure
liquid.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
The vapour formed is allowed to

escape into the condenser where
The mixture is heated the vapour condenses.
in a distilling flask until
the mixture boils.
The pure liquid collected

from distillation is called the
distillate. The distillate is
collected in a conical flask.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• We have learnt that distillation is used to separate

pure water from a solution of mineral salts and water.
• One application is the treatment of seawater to obtain
drinking water which we will learn more about later.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.2 Separating Techniques- Paper chromatography
Paper chromatography and its applications

• Paper chromatography makes use of the fact that
different substances dissolve to different
extents in a mixture.
• Different substances move at different rates up the
chromatography paper.
• Substances that are more soluble in a solvent will
move faster than substances that are less soluble.
• Paper chromatography is the technique used to

separate small amounts of substances, especially
pigments, from mixtures.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
A spot of ink is applied to a piece of

chromatography paper, which is then
lowered into the solvent. The solvent
dissolves the dyes in the ink. The dyes
move up the paper together with the
solvent.
The different dyes in the ink mixture

travel at different rates along the paper.
(continued on next slide)

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
solvent front (maximum height

reached by solvent before the
chromatogram is removed)
At the end of the experiment, the

different dyes in the ink will be
separated on the chromatography
paper. The paper with the different
coloured spots is called a
chromatogram.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• We can use paper chromatography to:
• Identify the contents of a mixture.
• Test the purity of a substance.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Below are some applications of paper chromatography:
Identifying food colourings: Paper chromatography can be used to ensure that

harmful colourings are not used in food.
Identifying the dyes used in ink: Paper chromatography can be used to find out the
different kinds of dyes that make up different inks (in cases where we need to
identify forged written documents).

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.2 Separating Techniques- Summary
Mixtures
Magnetic Substances Dissolved Substances Substances that

and non- with solids with dissolve to
magnetic different different different extents
substances particle boiling in a solvent
sizes points
can be separated can be

can be can be to obtain the can be
separated to
separated by separated by solid by separated by
obtain the
liquid by
Magnetic Filtration Evaporation Distillation Paper

attraction chromatography

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
At the end of this section, you should be able to

answer the following questions:
How is used water

treated to obtain potable
water (drinking water) ?
How is seawater treated

to obtain potable water?

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Lesson trigger
Why is it important to purify

water before we can drink it?

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Singapore mist have reliable water supplies to meet our

national needs.
• The four sources of water are known as the Four National
Taps
1. water from local catchment
(drains, rivers, reservoirs)
2. imported water (from Malaysia)
3. NEWater
4. desalinated water

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Water that comes from seawater, rivers, lakes and

groundwater is non-potable water.
• We can use separation techniques to obtain drinking water
from non-potable sources such as:
• Used water
• Seawater

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.3 Obtaining Potable Water- NEWater
Obtaining drinking water from used water

• Sewage water is first treated with chemicals before it
is purified in order to kill any bacteria present.
• The techniques used to purify treated sewage water
must be able to separate impurities from the water.
• There are two stages to obtain drinking water from
treated sewage water:
• Microfiltration
• Reverse osmosis

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.3 Obtaining Potable Water- - NEWater
Microfiltration
• This technique removes small particles from the
treated sewage water.
A membrane filter (with tiny The water obtained from

pores) traps suspended solids microfiltration contains mainly
and most disease-causing dissolved salts and chemical
micro-organisms. molecules.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Reverse osmosis Optional for N(A)
• This technique removes the following from treated
sewage water:
• disease-causing micro-organisms;
• dissolved salts; and
• chemical molecules from the water.
The water obtained from microfiltration is pumped at
high pressures through a special membrane.
The pores of this membrane are so small that only

very small molecules, such as water molecules, can
pass through, but not disease-causing micro-
organisms, dissolved salts and chemical molecules.
The water obtained from reverse osmosis is free

from bacteria and viruses. It also contains trace
amounts of dissolved salts and chemicals.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.3 Obtaining Potable Water- Desalinated water
Treatment of seawater
• Seawater is non-potable as it contains a lot of salt.
• Seawater can be treated in a process called
desalination.
Desalination plants
• Desalination removes dissolved salts from
seawater to obtain pure water.
• Distillation is a technique used to carry out
desalination. It is not widely used as it is expensive
and needs a lot of heat energy.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
4.3 Obtaining Potable Water4.3 Obtaining Potable Water- Desalinated water
Seawater is boiled in a
boiling chamber to
produce steam.
The steam
condenses as it
passes through a
condenser.
Water is then
collected as a
distillate.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
• Desalination plants are used to convert seawater to
drinking water on ships and in many dry regions on
the earth.
Aquifers are water sources that can be found underground. Click here for
an interactive activity on how to build your own aquifers.
• How can clean water in aquifers become contaminated?
• Why is it important to treat contaminated water from aquifers?

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,
Acknowledgements
2 flamingoes © Concetta Zingale | Dreamstime.com, 5 sieve © Petr Malyshev | Dreamstime.com, 14
coffee machine © nitzkovic | Public Domain, water treatment plant © Irabel8 | Dreamstime.com, 16
Upper Peirce Reservoir © Hekege | Public Domain, 21 salting water © Daniel Täger |
iStockphoto.com, 22 salt pans © Musat Christian | Dreamstime.com, salt farm © Akeeris |
Dreamstime.com, 32 kueh © Ming Onn Boey | iStockphoto.com, ink pen © Danieloizo |
Dreamstime.com, 35 NEWater © Public Utilities Board, Singapore, 41 water treatment plant © Irabel8
| Dreamstime.com, 42 desert © Mark A. Wilson | Public Domain, 46 microcentrifuge tube ©
Jankaliciak | Dreamstime.com
The URLs are valid as at 15 July 2013.

(Singapore) LSS
Ltd syllabus,

C4 Separation Techniques - Teacher

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Chapter 4

4.1 Purpose of Separation Techniques

© Assumption English School – Science Department

• The ability to separate mixtures into their

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Magnetic Filtration Evaporation Distillation Paper

© Assumption English School – Science Department

• Magnetic attraction is used to separate magnetic

• Magnetic attraction makes use of the fact that only

© Assumption English School – Science Department

• Magnetic attraction has allowed for quicker and

© Assumption English School – Science Department

When the magnet is switched off,

© Assumption English School – Science Department

During food Food is placed in Removal of metal pieces

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Filtrations and its applications

• Filtration works on the basis that, in a suspension,

Can you recall

© Assumption English School – Science Department

A suspension is passed through a filter paper as

The filter paper has tiny pores that

The liquid that passes through the filter

© Assumption English School – Science Department

• Filtration has many applications in our everyday lives and

Coffee makers Water treatment plants

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Filter paper is placed in the The filter paper separates the

© Assumption English School – Science Department

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Water is filtered through layers of

Solid silt and sand particles are

© Assumption English School – Science Department

© Assumption English School – Science Department

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Evaporation and its applications

• Evaporation is the technique used to separate

• Evaporation makes use of the fact that the solvent

© Assumption English School – Science Department

A solution is heated over When the mixture has

The solid left

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Production of salt from seawater

Click here to watch a video on

How are the holding ponds

© Assumption English School – Science Department

In some parts of the world, The heat from the sun

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Distillation and its applications

© Assumption English School – Science Department

© Assumption English School – Science Department

• Distillation is the technique used to separate a pure

• Distillation involves evaporation and

© Assumption English School – Science Department

The vapour formed is allowed to

The pure liquid collected

© Assumption English School – Science Department

• We have learnt that distillation is used to separate

© Assumption English School – Science Department

Paper chromatography and its applications

• Paper chromatography is the technique used to

© Assumption English School – Science Department