Lab#3 Separation of a Mixture of Solids Essay example

Words: 1602
Pages: 7

Title:
Lab #3 Separation of a Mixture of Solids
Purpose:
To understand the different separation methods and techniques that depend on the chemical properties of a specific substance. Also to become more comfortable with performing those actions of separation so I have them in the future. For this experiment, I will separate a mixture of four distinct substances: sodium chloride, benzoic acid, silicon dioxide, and iron fillings into pure beings.
Procedure:
Materials:

distilled water coffee cups (2) plastic wrap sheet of paper(2) small saucer paper towels crushed ice
100mL beaker, glass
Burner – fuel
Burner-stand
Cylinder, 25mL
Funnel
Goggles
Digital scale
Magnet bar
Stirring rod
Filter paper
Mixture of
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But overall, the amounts of each substance found were relatively close together. For this experiment, I felt that there were quite a few sources of error (listed below), but we would not know because each mixture has different amount then this one did, so there would be no way to accurately repeat it exactly the same to see if we get different results.
Questions:
A. How did your proposed procedures of flow charts at the beginning of this experiment compare the actual procedures of this lab exercise? – Mine was pretty much the same as the actual procedure because I have worked with most of the substances before and was familiar with how to single them out. The only one I did not know about was the benzoic acid, since I had never even heard of it. So I was not sure how we were going to separate that out of the mixture. Otherwise, it was basically the same ideas and methods.
B. Discuss potential advantages or disadvantages of your proposed procedure compared to the one actually used. – My procedure was definitely based more on using the right methods and action, so it was not very exact with things like: taking measurements, using correct amounts of water, and recording data. So, if we had used mine, it would not have been very clear or accurate, but it would have taught the basic techniques for future knowledge.
C. How would you explain a sand recovery percentage that is higher than the original sand