When you need to separate the solvent from a solution then distillation is the way to go. The solvent evaporates, leaves the solute behind, and can be condensed in a separate container.
Category:Chemistry
Hydrocarbon Explosions…
I think I have shown you this high speed video of a YouTube scientist igniting mixtures of hydrocarbon gases and air. He does this because it is fun, and because it shows the different energies released with different mixtures. This shuttle launch shows the incredible energy released when hydrogen is combined with oxygen. The reaction is exothermic, …
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The Dreaded Suck-Back…
If you heat a boiling tube, and it has a delivery tube submerged in water, then you need to be wary of suck-back. When you stop heating, the contents of the boiling tube cool and the air contracts. This draws water up the delivery tube and into the hot glass boiling tube. Hot glass does …
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Carbohydrate…
If you look at the word carbohydrate you can probably work out what elements it must be made from. The letters ate at the end of a compound indicate that there is oxygen built into the molecule. Examples would be copper sulfate (copper, sulfur & oxygen) or calcium carbonate (calcium, carbon & oxygen). Carbohydrate does …
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Various Reagents…
There are numerous chemicals that are used in science practical work but which only get the briefest of mentions. I thought it might be useful to make a list of some here so that you can learn what they all do. Solvents We use various solvents (to dissolve things) with water being the most obvious. …
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A Quick Puzzle…
What chemical element is represented by this list? (Answers in the comments below please.) SILICONHELIUMNEONHYDOGENLEADOXYGEN Here’s a periodic table to help you. Click on it for a larger version.
Melchior…
I am dropping back to just one post a day for a while. There is plenty in the back catalogue if you need more. Happy Christmas! Melchior is an alloy of copper and nickel used to make coins and cutlery. It is silvery in colour and particularly resistant to corrosion, even in saltwater. One version …
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It’s A Gas…
There are three common states of matter; solid, liquid and gas. This statement ignores other less common states of matter like plasma (very hot) or Bose-Einstein condensate (very cold). Exam questions often ask you to explain events in terms of the behaviour of the particles involved. This is easier if you can picture how particles …
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Diffusion…
Diffusion is the random movement of particles from areas of high concentration to areas of lower concentration. This happens because the particles in a liquid, solution or gas are able to move freely. The following video explains it quite nicely with a sugar lump dissolving in water as the example. . I will write about …
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Carbon…
Carbon, as the compound carbon dioxide, gets some bad press for its effects on climate – and so it should! But that is pretty harsh on the element carbon (and the element oxygen for that point). Carbon is the fifteenth most abundant element in the Earth’s crust, and the fourth most abundant in the Universe. …
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