Separation Techniques

Question 1

What are mixtures?

Answer 1

Mixtures are different elements and/or compounds that are not chemically bonded together.

Question 2

Why separate mixtures?

Answer 2

We separate mixtures for many different reasons one of them is to get a specific chemical or compound that may need to be used for something else. You could also find out what is in a mixture, you could figure out what poison was used to kill someone.

Question 3

Solution

Answer 3

A solution is a mixture of a solvent and a solute.

Question 4

Solubility

Answer 4

Solubility is how much solute can be dissolved in the solvent.

Question 5

Filtration

Answer 5

Filtration is a separating technique that allows really small particles to drip through but stops the

Question 6

Evaporation

Answer 6

Evaporation is when you heat up a mixture and the substance with the lower boiling point will evaporate and the substances with the higher boiling points will be left behind.

Question 7

Distillation

Answer 7

Distillation is when you heat up a mixture and it will evaporate the substance with the higher boiling points first and the other one will be left behind. However the substance that has boiled isn’t lost in the surrounding air, it goes into the condenser which then condenses it back into liquid form.

Question 8

Chromatography

Answer 8

Chromatography is a separation technique that separates inks into its separate colours. The water drags the inks up the paper and the ones at the top are either less sticky to the paper or are more soluble.

Question 9

Filtration examples

Answer 9

Separating water and sand

Question 10

Evaporation example

Answer 10

Salt water

Question 11

Distillation example

Answer 11

Inky water

Question 12

Chromatography example

Answer 12

Separation of different pen inks.

Question 13

How to decide the technique.

Answer 13

If it is separating something small from something big it is immediately filtration. If it is separating ink then it is chromatography. If you don’t need the substance with the lower boiling point use evaporation as it is easier to set up, however, if you need all the different parts of the mixture back you will need to go with distillation.

Question 14

Filtration works by…

Answer 14

Filter paper allowing small particles through but not a big clump of particles.

Question 15

Evaporation works by…

Answer 15

The substance with the lower boiling point be evaporated out of the mixture but the substances that have a boiling point higher than the temperature used to evaporate the mixture will stay where it is.

Question 16

Distillation works by…

Answer 16

It is the same principle as evaporation but the substance that has got boiled has no where else to go but the condenser which then cools down the gas and turns it back into a liquid.

Question 17

Chromatography works by…

Answer 17

The water drags the ink up the paper but as some of the ink sticks to the paper more it stays put while the rest of the ink carries on getting dragged up the paper.

Question 18

Risks of filtration

Answer 18

Filtration doesn’t have many risks unless you are using a glass beaker in which case it might brake if you knock it over.

Question 19

Risks of evaporation

Answer 19

You will need to use heat for evaporation; this means if you are not careful you could get burnt.