preview

Separation Of Methylene Chloride And Hydrochloric Acid

Decent Essays
The process of extraction removes a desired compound from a mixture. Because molecules with similar intermolecular forces are more soluble in one another, organic compounds are usually dissolved in organic solvents. Based on the solubility differences of the organic solution and water, when mixed, two distinct layers form. Sometimes, small amounts of the solvent may dissolve in water. To prevent contamination of the product, a drying agent is added to absorb the water molecule. The organic solvent is evaporated from the organic compound through the use of a rotary evaporator. It is a quick process that reduces the pressure and thus the boiling point of a liquid. In this experiment, eugenol was separated from mixtures containing methylene chloride and hexane. If was predicted that methylene chloride would be the most effective solvents due to its immiscibility to water and low boiling point.

Procedure

First, 0.210 g of eugenol, deionized water and methylene chloride were poured into a separatory funnel. The funnel was shaken and vented 2-3 times. It was placed onto a ring clamp until two layers formed. Then, the top and bottom layers were slowly filtered out into two different beakers. Next, MgSo4 was added to the top layer solution until
…show more content…
In order for the two layers to form, the solvent had to be immiscible in H2O. Based on their chemical structures, acetone, ethanol, and ethyl acetate are polar molecules This makes them miscible in water. Methylene Chloride is polar, but does not form Hydrogen bonds with H2O. Hexane is nonpolar (Figure 1). Therefore, these two solvents are immiscible in water. At the end of the experiment, the solvent would be evaporated from the solution. Thus, a solvent with a low boiling point was more desirable. The two solvents selected were methylene chloride and hexane with boiling points of respectively 36.9 C and 68 C (Table
Get Access