Simple Distillation ♥

5:30 PM Sunday, March 20, 2011

Simple Distillation by Kok Zhi Yee :D

SIMPLE DISTILLATION

Simple Distillation is the process of boiling a liquid mixture/solution and condensing the vapour to obtain a pure liquid. [which means, separating liquids from the solution] :)

PROCEDURE

1. Solution mixture is heated in a flask until the mixture boils.

2. Pure liquid turns into a vapour and leaves the flask.

3. Vapour is then cooled in a condenser which changes back into liquid.

4. Pure liquid collected is called the distillate and is collected in a conical flask.
HOW DOES SIMPLE DISTILLATION WORK?
1. In the distillation flask, liquid boils and enters the condenser.
2. In the condenser, vapour condenses to pure liquid.
3. Pure liquid is collected as distillate.
PRECAUTIONS
THERMOMETER:
This ensures that the thermometer measures the boiling point of the substance is being distilled. It MUST be placed at the mouth of the distillation flask.
CONDENSER:
1. Condenser is slanted to ensure the liquid will flow down.2. Water enter from below to ensure that the whole condenser is filled with water.
BOILING CHIPS:
1. To ensure smooth boiling.2. To prevent too much bubbling.

REAL WORLD APPLICATION OF SIMPLE DISTILLATION

In distillation, the more volatile component of the mixture—that is, the part that is more easily vaporized—is separated from the less volatile portion. With regard to the illustration used above, of separating water from salt, clearly the water is the more volatile portion: its boiling point is much, much lower than that of salt, and the heat required to vaporize the salt is so great that the water would be long since vaporized by the time the salt was affected.

Once the volatile portion has been vaporized, or turned into distillate, it experiences condensation—the cooling of a gas to form a liquid, after which the liquid or condensate is collected. Note that in all these stages of distillation, heat is the agent of separation. This is especially important in the process of fractional distillation, discussed below.

The process of removing water vapor from salt water, described earlier, is an example of what is called "single-stage differential distillation." Sometimes, however—especially when a

A WATER FILTRATION PLANT IN CONTRA C OSTA COUNTY , CALIFORNIA .

(James A. Sugar/Corbis. Reproduced by permission.)

high level of purity in the resulting condensate is desired—it may be necessary to subject the condensate to multiple processes of distillation to remove additional impurities. This process is called rectification.

REFLECTION
I think distillation is important as we will get to separate mixtures to get the pure liquid. If it does not exists, we are not able to extract essential oils from plants or separate alcohol from water to make distilled spirits such as vodka.