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Four ways to separate a mixture
Age 12 · Chemistry
A mixture can be pulled apart because its components have different properties, such as size, boiling point or how easily they dissolve. Filtration, evaporation, distillation and chromatography each use one of these differences.
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In the picture
- Filtration: the paper holds back the sand and lets the water through
- Evaporation: the water escapes as vapour and the salt stays in the dish
- Distillation: the vapour cools in the condenser and turns back into pure liquid
- Chromatography: the inks climb the paper at different speeds and split into colours
Examples
- A coffee filter keeps the ground coffee and lets the coffee drink through
- In salt marshes, the sun evaporates seawater and leaves salt behind
Key takeaways
- Filtration separates an undissolved solid from a liquid
- Evaporation keeps the dissolved solid, while distillation also collects the pure liquid
Quiz: Four ways to separate a mixture (Age 12)
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What does filtration separate?
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You want to keep both the salt and the pure water from salty water. Which method should you use?
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Why can the parts of a mixture be separated?
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