In: Chemistry
Design an experiment to separate a mixture of Aluminum nitrate (Al(NO3)3) and Caffeine. All nitrates are water soluble ionic compounds. Although caffeine is water soluble, it is ten times more soluble in an organic solvent like Methylene Chloride.
Aluminum nitrate is an ionic compound and is soluble in polar solvents.
Caffeine, on the other hand, is an organic compound and is soluble in organic solvents.
Here we will use Dichloromethane, an organic solvent for the separation of Aluminum nitrate and Caffeine. Caffeine has a high solubility of 140 mg/ml in dichloromethane.
When the mixture of Aluminum nitrate and Caffeine is dissolved in dichloromethane, the Aluminum nitrate is obtained as filtrate.
The mixture of dichloromethane and caffeine can be separated on the basis of the difference in densities of dichloromethane and water. Dichloromethane is insoluble in water and much denser than it.
The mixture gets separated into two layers - the upper layer is the caffeine layer and the bottom layer is the dichloromethane layer.
Drain the bottom layer into a conical flask and dry the combined dichloromethane solution with anhydrous Sodium sulfite.
Evaporate dichloromethane slowly.
When all the solvent is removed we get yellowish green - white crystalline residue of caffeine.