2023/2024 TERM 2 RESL STUDENT NOTES

TEACHER’S NAME
SUBJECT
CLASS
LIST OF TOPICS COVERED
WEEK TOPIC

6 HTA

7 HTB

10

11

12

13 FTA

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WEEK 1 NOTES

Purification
CHARACTERISTICS OF PURE SUBSTANCES OR CRITERIA
FOR PURITY
1. They must have definite melting point
2. Definite boiling point.
3. Definite density.

PURE AND IMPURE SUBSTANCES

TEST PURE SUBSTANCE IMPURE
SUBSTANCE
1Melting point Definite or sharp Melts over a
melting point temperature range and
at a lower temperature
than a pure substance
2.Boiling point Sharp, all the pure Boils over a
liquid boils at the same temperature range and
temperature at a higher temperature
than pure liquid.
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3.Chromatograph Pure substances usually Produces more than
y produces only one spot one spot.
on the chromatogram.

NOTE: Separation techniques can be used to obtain samples of

pure substances. The purity can be easily checked by determining
their melting points (for solids) or boiling points (for liquids).

Chromatography

Chromatography can be used to separate the components of

solutions which contain several dissolved substances. The substances
are often coloured, but may be colourless. Examples of mixtures to be
separated by chromatography are dyes, paints(pigment), inks,
chlorophyll (green pigments).
Paper chromatography can be used to separate the dyes in ink.
• A spot of the ink is placed on the chromatography paper.
• The paper is placed in a suitable solvent (ethanol or water) in a
beaker. If the solvent is volatile (vaporises easily) it is necessary to
put a lid on the beaker to prevent the vapour from escaping.

• As the solvent rises, the dyes in the ink separate.

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NOTE: When carrying out chromatography the solvent

level should be below the base line to prevent the
mixture from dissolving in the solvent.

Industrial application: it is used in the identification

and analysis of substances.

Chromatography can also be used to identify the

components of mixture as well as separate them.

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• A mixture of dyes is placed on chromatography paper in the position
marked X.

• Four dyes whose identities are known are placed in positions marked A, B,
C and D, as shown (Figure 2.2). These four dyes are referred to as standards.

• Chromatography is then carried out and the chromatography paper

(also known as a chromatogram) is removed from the beaker and dried.

• The paper is then labelled to show what mixture X contains, as described below.

The results of the experiment show:

• X is composed of three dyes because the mixture has been separated into three.

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• The three dyes are A, B and D. We know this because the three dyes in mixture X have travelled the
same distances as the three standards A, B and D whose identities are known.

• We can also conclude that mixture X does not contain dye C, because none of the components of X
travelled the same distance as dye C.

Chromatography can also be used to identify colourless substances. The

experimental technique is the same, but because the components of the
mixture are colourless, the spots on the chromatography paper are invisible.
After drying, the paper is sprayed with a locating agent which reacts with
the components of the mixture to produce coloured spots. In the separation
of amino acids by chromatography, the chromatography paper is sprayed
with ninhydrin which is a locating agent that produces blue coloured spots
with amino acids.
Instead of using standards as described in the above experiment, components
of a mixture can be identified by their Rf values (Retention factor).
Chromatography is carried out and after the chromatography paper is
dried, the distance that the solvent has travelled and the distance that the
component of the mixture has travelled are both measured as shown in
Figure 2.4

NOTE: Interpreting simple chromatograms:

1. Number of rings/dots = number of substances

2. If two dots travel the same distance up the paper they are the same substance.
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3. You can calculate the Rf value to identify a substance, given by the formula:

Rf value = distance moved by substance / distance moved by solvent

To make colourless substances visible you use a locating agent:

1. Dry paper in oven

2. Spray it with locating agent

3.Heat it for 10 minutes in oven.

The stationary phase is the material on which the separation takes place (e.g. the paper).

The mobile phase consists of the mixture you want to separate, dissolved in a solvent.

CHROMATOGRAPHY
Chromatography is a separation technique that employs the differences
in the rate of migration of the components in a mixture (as they move
between the mobile phase and the stationary phase) to effect their
separation.
There are different types of chromatography namely: Paper
Chromatography, Thin Layer Chromatography, High Performance Liquid
Chromatography, Gas Chromatography etc.

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Paper Chromatography: The principle of paper chromatography
involves movement of the constituents of the mixture over an
adsorbent medium (stationary phase) by the solvent (mobile
phase). The separation is effected based on the affinity of the
constituents for either the stationary phase or the mobile phase.
Procedure
When carrying out a simple paper chromatography experiment, the
following procedure should be followed:
i. Draw a line with the pencil on a chromatography (filter)
paper.
ii. Place the filter paper into a beaker with a small volume of
water.
iii. Ensure that the baseline on the filter paper is above the
water level.
iv. Mark the solvent front and calculate the Rf values.
Retention Factor (Rf ) = Distance moved by the pigment (Dp)
Distance moved by the solvent (Ds)
Locating Agents: Locating agents are compounds (chemicals)
which are sprayed on the chromatogram to make colourless
compounds visible after the chromatogram must have been
warmed in an oven e.g. ninhydrin.
Three important facts that must be stated after developing a
chromatogram are:
1. Stationary phase e.g. filter paper or silica gel
2. Mobile phase e.g. water, ethanol
3. Retention factor

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