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Separation
Techniques
 Pure and Impure
substances
A pure substance is made up of only one
substance and is not mixed with any other
substance.
A mixture is a substance that contains two or
more substances that are not chemically
combined.
Purity of a substance can determined by testing
its melting and boiling points or
chromatography.
 Fixed Melting & Boiling
points
Fixed boiling point Fixed melting point

A pure solid will melt A pure solid will boil at

completely at a fixed an exact and fixed
temperature. temperature.
Impurities lower the Impurities higher the
melting point of a
boiling point of a
substances.
substances.
Impurities cause melting
to occur over a range of Impurities cause
temperatures. boiling to occur over a
range of temperatures.
 Separation Methods

Separation method What it separates

Chromatography Compounds in a solution with same properties
Filtration Solids or group of solids and liquids in a mixture
Evaporation Solids that cannot decompose when heated in a
solution
Crystallisation Dissolved solids in a solution
Simple Distillation Liquids in a solution
Fractional Distillation Mixture of miscible (dissolved) liquids

Separating Funnel Immiscible (undissolved) liquids

Sublimation Substances that sublime from two substances
Magnetic Attraction Magnetic substances from non-magnetic ones
 Difference in properties
enable the separation
Separation method
Chromatography
methods to work
Differences between objects
Solubility with ethanol
Filtration Size of particles
Evaporation State of object (solid and liquid)
Crystallisation State of object (solid and liquid)
Simple Distillation Boiling points
Fractional Distillation Boiling points

Separating Funnel Both are immiscible

Sublimation Ability to sublime
Magnetic Attraction Magnetism
 Separating compounds
with same properties
Chromatography

Apply a spot of food colouring to the

chromatography paper. Dip the chromato-
graphy paper in ethanol.
Ethanol dissolves the dyes and travels up
the paper, carrying the dyes along.
Coloured spots are left in different places of
the paper depending on the solubility of the
dye in ethanol.
 Separating insoluble
solids from a liquid
Filtration

Place a piece of filter paper in a filter funnel.

Position a beaker under the filter funnel.
Pour the mixture into the filter funnel. The
liquid passes through the filter paper while
the insoluble solids does not pass through.
The filtrate will be collected in the beaker
and the residue remains on the filter paper.
 Separating insoluble
solids from a liquid
Filtration

Place a piece of filter paper in a filter funnel.

Position a beaker under the filter funnel.
Pour the mixture into the filter funnel. The
liquid passes through the filter paper while
the insoluble solids does not pass through.
The filtrate will be collected in the beaker
and the residue remains on the filter paper.
 Separating dissolved
solids from a solution
Crystallisation

Crystillisation applies to all substances while

evaporation applies to substances that do
not decompose when heated strongly.
Set up an apparatus of a beaker of the
solution.
Apply heat under the beaker with a bunsen
burner until a hot saturated solution is
formed.
 Separating a solvent
from a solution
Simple Distillation

Place a distillation flask under a bunsen

burner and connect it to a condenser. Cold
running water is allowed to enter from the
bottom condenser and leave from the top.
Allow the condenser to slope downwards
towards a beaker where the distillate is
collected.
Heat a distillation flask with the solution
Separating miscible liquids

Fractional Distillation

Place a distillation flask under a bunsen

burner and connect it to a fractional column.
The fractional column is connected to a
condenser.
Cold running water is allowed to enter from
the bottom condenser and leave from the
top.
Allow the condenser to slope downwards
 Separating immiscible
liquids
Separating funnel
Pour the mixture into the separating funnel.
Support the separating funnel using a retort
stand and place the beaker below the
funnel.
Allow the liquids to separate completely. The
denser liquid will fall to the bottom.
Open the tap of the funnel to allow the
bottom layer to drain into the beaker.
Close the tap when the liquid is fully
Separating a substance that sublimes
from another with high melting point
Sublimation

Place the mixture in an evaporating dish.

Position the dish under a bunsen burner.
Place an inverted funnel just above the dish.
The substance with high melting point
would be left on the dish.
The other substance will vapourise and
solidify when it lands on the surface of the
 Separating magnetic
objects from non-magnetic
Magnetic attraction objects
Place the mixture of magnetic and non-
magnetic objects in a dish.
Place a magnet directly above the dish.
Magnetic objects will be attracted to the
magnet while non-magnetic objects will be
left on the dish.
 Uses of techniques in daily
life
Separation method Common uses
Chromatography • Identify coloured substances used food products
• Identify if foods contain banned dyes

Filtration Separating sand from water

•

• Human nose traps dust and allows oxygen to

pass
Crystallisation • Separating salt from salt water
Simple Distillation • Separating water from salt water in desalination
 Uses of techniques in daily
life
Separation method Common uses
Fractional Distillation • Separate petrol, kerosene and diesel from
petroleum
• Obtain nitrogen, argon and oxygen from air
Separating Funnel • Separate oil and water
Sublimation • Separate iodine from sand
Magnetic Attraction • Recycling magnetic materials by separating them
from domestic waste