In chemistry and chemical engineering, a separation process, or simply a separation, is any mass transfer process that converts a mixture

of substances into two or more distinct product mixtures, at least one of which is enriched in one or more of the mixture's constituents. In some cases, a separation may fully divide the mixture into its pure constituents. Separations are carried out based on differences in chemical properties such as size, shape, mass, or chemical affinity between the constituents of a mixture, and are often classified according to the particular differences they use to achieve separation. components in a mixture retain their identities exploit properties that distinguish the components to separate mixtures the more similar the properties are, the more difficult it is to separate them 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 phase transfer from a mobile mixture to a stationary phase phase separation by condensing gases in the mixture to liquids 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 ones float ions in the mixture bind to surfaces with 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) a gas bubbled through the mixture carries off the most volatile components 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 gaseous mixtures containing at least one gas with a much higher boiling point than the others solutions containing small molecules mixed with very large molecules gaseous mixtures containing gases with different molecular weights mixtures of solids with different solubilities solid mixtures with a metal as one component heterogeneous mixture containing a solid phase heterogeneous mixture with phases with different densities solutions containing ions

technique adsorption / desorption chromatography

condensation

dialysis

effusion

dissolution (washing, solvent extraction) electrorefining

filtration floatation ion exchange

precipitation scrubbing

solutions containing a solute that can be precipitated gaseous mixtures containing a solute that can be selectively absorbed by a scrubbing solution a liquid mixture containing at least one volatile component

stripping

(phase transfer from solution to gas) volatilization (drying, distillation,sublimation) 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

Adsorption and desorption 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

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 UF6

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

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)

Electrorefining 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

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

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 water deionization

Precipitation 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

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

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

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 Decanting is a process to separate mixtures. Decanting is just allowing a mixture of solid and liquid or two immiscible liquids to settle and separate by gravity. This process can be slow and tedious without the aid of a centrifuge. Once the mixture components have separated, the lighter liquid is poured off leaving the heavier liquid or solid behind. Typically, a small amount of the lighter liquid is left behind. In laboratory conditions, small volumes of mixtures are decanted in test tubes. If time is not a concern, the test tube is kept at a 45 angle in a test tube rack. This allows the heavier particles to slide down the side of the test tube while allowing the lighter liquid a path to rise to the top. If the test tube were held vertically, the heavier mixture component could block the test tube and not allow the lighter liquid to pass as it rises. A centrifuge can greatly increase the rate of separation by simulating a great increase in the force of gravity. Some mixtures that can be decanted: Oil and water - oil floats on top of water. Decanting the mixture allows the oil to be poured off the water. Gasoline or kerosene and water - this mixture is an example often cited as a safety hazard. Decanting a mixture containing flammable solvents can be dangerous

mixture of ice and coffee crystals. The pressure over the mixture is lowered so that the ice sublimates, leaving the coffee crystals behind.

as the flammable material evaporates and forms dangerous fumes. Dirt and water - muddy water can be cleared up by decanting. The soil will sink to the bottom of the tube allowing the clear water to be poured off. Wine - Sediment from the fermentation process can produce an undesirable taste. Wine is decanted to separate the wine from these sediments. Cream and milk - Cream is separated from milk by decantation. Cream rises to the top of the milk mixture and is easily skimmed off. Blood and plasma: A centrifuge is necessary for this decantation. Plasma can be removed from blood by decantation.

Condensation is the change of the physical state of matter from gaseous phase into liquid phase, and is the [1] reverse of vaporization. When the transition happens from the gaseous phase into the solid phase directly, the change is called deposition. Filtration is commonly the mechanical or physical operation which is used for the separation of solids from fluids (liquids or gases) by interposing a medium through which only the fluid can pass. Oversize solids in the fluid are retained, but the separation is not complete; solids will be contaminated with some fluid and filtrate will contain fine particles (depending on the pore size and filter thickness).