General Luna Road, Baguio City, 2600

EXPERIMENT 2: SEPARATING MIXTURES

(AN EXPERIMENT ON PAPER CHROMATOGRAPHY)

In Partial Fulfillment for the Formal Paper for SPCHEM 1

GROUP 6 AVOCADOS NUMBER

CUILAN, Tameka Joise A.1

IBAY, Mary Robelyn F.2

KINDIPAN, Kahlila V.3

MARRERO, Michelle Deanne E.4

MERCADO, Eea Cassandra S.5

NISPEROS, John Derrick H.6

University of Baguio Senior Science High School

March 2017
 ABSTRACT

The analytical method used to separate colored chemicals or substances

is known as chromatography. All forms of chromatography function and

operate on the same principle. There are two phases of chromatography: the

stationary phase and the mobile phase. The mobile phase flows through the

stationary phase and carries the components of the mixture with it. Different

components have different characteristics which causes them to react to

chromatography at a different rate, pace, and speed. In the paper, the form of

chromatography used is Paper Chromatography. In this type of

chromatography, the stationary phase is a very uniform absorbent paper while

the mobile phase on the other hand, is a suitable liquid solvent (or a mixture

of such). The experiment which involves the use of isopropyl alcohol as the

mobile phase, and the filter paper as a stationary phase, was done in order to

see and understand how paper chromatography works, to use it to separate

mixtures, and to assess whether or not the ink used in the experiment is a

mixture.

INTRODUCTION

At one point or another, we have experienced accidentally soaking our papers in school.

When that happens, the ink sometimes become smudged or blurred, but often times, it

splits up into weird colored streaks that scatter across the page. This phenomenon is

called chromatography.
Chromatography came from the Greek words chroma and graphe which literally means

color writing. It was invented by Russian Botanist, Mikhail Tsvet and is used by

chemists to identify unknown substances by separating them into the different

molecules that they comprise of. At its simplest, Chromatography is a way of separating

out a mixture of chemicals (either in gas or liquid form) by letting them spread slowly

past another substance which can be solid or liquid. In the experiment done, the ink is

the liquid substance thatby being dissolved in isopropyl alcoholrose over the

surface of the paper, which is the solid substance.

Paper chromatography is important because it makes separating components in a

sample simpler and easier. Without it, it will be hard to identify the exact number of

components in a sample. With paper chromatography, understanding mixtures and

determining a samples purity will be easier, simpler, and more doable for students and

chemists alike.

Chromatography might not seem familiar to many but it is a process that affects our

daily lives in a variety of ways. Aside from being used to separate out a compound into

its various components, chromatography plays a vital role in the fields of forensics, food

regulation, athlete testing and even quality control in our favorite alcoholic drinks.

Chromatography can also help protect our environment through helping detect

pharmaceuticals in water and combating the long-term impacts of oil-spills.

Indeed, chromatography is a process that is not only used inside the classrooms, but

also in the real world.

 MATERIALS AND PROCEDURES

Materials

The Materials that have been used in the course of the experiment are as

follows:

Green Marking Pen

Filter Paper Strip
Ruler
Clear Scotch Tape
Pencil
Isopropyl Alcohol
Clear Plastic Cup
Clear Plastic Wrap

Procedures

The marking pen was used to draw a 2.0 cm line across the strip of filter paper. Then,

the unmarked end of the filter paper was taped to the center of a pencil in a manner

such that the strip hangs down when the pencil is held horizontally on the cup. This part

of the set-upthe filter paperacted as the Stationary mode in the experiment

conducted.

The mobile mode of the experiment, on the other hand, is the container with the solvent

which, in this case, is the isopropyl alcohol and the plastic cup. The isopropyl alcohol

was poured to a depth of 1.0 cm into a plastic cup.

Once the set-up was done, the pencil was rested on the rim of the cup in a way that the

ink line end of the strip touched the solvent. The rim was then covered with plastic wrap

and the set-up was left to be observed for fifteen minutes.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Chromatography uses two types of substance: the mobile phase and the stationary

phase. The mobile phase is the substance that isas the name statesmobile. It is

either a gas or liquid that transports the solution being tested. At its simplest, it is the

moving substance in the experiment. In the experiment conducted, the container with

the isopropyl alcohol acted as the mobile phase. The stationary phase, on the other

hand, is the stationary or non-moving part of the set-up. It is the liquid or solid which the

tested substance is carried along. The filter paper functioned as the stationary phase in

the experiment done. As the mobile phase moves, it is separated out into its

components on the stationary phase. The stationary phase will then absorb or slow

down the different components of the solution or mixture to different degreesthereby

creating layer after layer as the components of the solution are separated.

After 15 minutes of observation, the ink that was drawn on the filter paper rose to the

edge, and different colors like blue, orange, and purple ascended from the spot where

the ink was.

Ink is a solution that contains a number of different molecules which, in turn, have

different characteristics (i.e. size, solubility, etc.) These differences among their

characteristics cause each molecule to travel at different rates when pulled along the
filter paper by the solvent. As the ink starts to move past the stationary phase, some of

its molecules become temporarily stuck on the paper before being pulled back into the

liquid that they came from. This occurrence is a kind of gluing effect known as

adsorption.

Ink is actually a mixture composed of different liquids which undergo adsorption in a

slightly pace with some liquids spending more or less time in either the stationary or

mobile phase. The lightest particles (not necessarily the lightest colored particles) move

more quickly and at a greater distance than the heavier particles. This is what causes

the different liquids within our original liquid mixture to spread out on the solid. Thus, all

of the pigments that make up an ink sample are separated out.

Through capillary action, the isopropyl alcohol travels up the paper, where it meets and

dissolves the ink. The ink dissolved by the alcohol (mobile phase) then travels up the

filter paper (stationary phase) and separates out into different pigments. The presence

of these colors proves that the ink is a combination of different components, thus, it can

therefore be concluded that the ink is a mixture.

CONCLUSION

Woodford (2016) stated that Chromatography is actually one of the most useful

analytical techniques chemists have at their disposal, helpful in everything from

identifying biological materials to finding clues at crime scenes. It is indeed a useful

analytical technique that chemists and students alike can use in order to separate and

assess different types of mixtures.

In the experiment conducted, paper chromatography was used in order to separate and

show that ink is a mixture. Through the use of isopropyl alcohol, which acted as the

mobile phase, and the filter paper, which acted as the stationary phase, the students

were able to prove that the ink is a mixture composed of different pigments.

Paper chromatography is a simple and easy way of separating mixtures. It can be used

our daily lives and it can help us understand the components of the different mixtures

that we interact with every day.

 REFERENCES

Clark, J. (2017). Paper chromatography. Chemguide.co.uk. Retrieved 19 March 2017,

from http://www.chemguide.co.uk/analysis/chromatography/paper.html

Woodford, C. (2016). How does chromatography work?. ExplainthatStuff.com.

Retrieved 19 March 2017, from

http://www.explainthatstuff.com/chromatography.html

Coppens, T. (2016). What Is Paper Chromatography and How Does it

Work?. Owlcation.com. Retrieved 19 March 2017, from

https://owlcation.com/stem/What-is-Paper-Chromatography-and-How-does-it-

Work

Labmate Online,. (2017). 5 Uses of Chromatography in Everyday Life Chromatography

Today. Chromatographytoday.com. Retrieved 19 March 2017, from

https://www.chromatographytoday.com/news/industrial-news/39/breaking-

news/5-uses-of-chromatography-in-everyday-life/32639

The Importance of Paper Chromatography. (2011). Chem-chroma.blogspot.com.

Retrieved 19 March 2017, from http://chem-

chroma.blogspot.com/2011/03/importance-of-paper-chromatography.html

LCGC Editors,. (2014). Chromatography in Real-World Applications: Current Trends in

Environmental, Food, Forensic, and Pharmaceutical
Analysis. Chromatographyonline.com. Retrieved 19 March 2017, from
http://www.chromatographyonline.com/chromatography-real-world-applications-
current-trends-environmental-food-forensic-and-pharmaceutical
 APPENDICES

Drawing a circle on the filter paper

Sticking the filter paper on the plastic

cup.

Putting isopropyl alcohol into the cup

See what happens after 15 minutes