Lecturer: Dr.

Ali Nasr Abdulkareem Chemistry Lab

EXPERIMENT NO. 1

FILTRATION

Introduction

Filtration is the process (mechanical or physical operation) of passing a liquid or gas, through
a filter in order to remove solid particles.

A solvent is chosen which dissolves one component, while not dissolving the other. By
dissolving the mixture in the chosen solvent, one component will go into the solution and
pass through the filter, the multilayer lattice that retains those particles that are unable to
follow the tortuous channels of the filter, while the other will be retained.

Filtration is a technique used for two main purposes. The first is to remove solid impurities
from a liquid. The second is to collect a desired solid from the solution from which it was
precipitated or crystallized. Several different kinds of filtration are commonly used: two
general methods include gravity filtration and vacuum (or suction) filtration.

Gravity Filtration

This method uses gravity to reach the goal of separation through filtration. The most familiar
technique is probably filtration of a solution through a paper filter held in a funnel, allowing
gravity to draw the liquid through the paper. Because even a small piece of filter paper will
absorb a significant volume of liquid, in most microscale procedure requiring filtration, this
technique is useful only when the volume of mixture to be filtered is greater than 10 ml.

Vacuum Filtration

Vacuum, or suction, filtration is more rapid than gravity filtration and is most often used to
collect solid products resulting from precipitation or crystallization. This technique is used
primarily when the volume of liquid being filtered is more than 1-2 mL. In a vacuum
filtration, a receiver flask with a sidearm, a filter flask, is used. The sidearm is connected by
heavy-walled rubber tubing to a source of vacuum. Thin-walled tubing (such as the tygon
tube you use to connect cooling water) will collapse under vacuum, due to atmospheric
pressure on its outside walls, and will seal the vacuum source from the flask.

Simple Filtration
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Lecturer: Dr. Ali Nasr Abdulkareem Chemistry Lab

Gravity Filtration

Vacuum Filtration

Materials Used

A. Chemicals
Sand (5g), water (50 ml), cellulose powder (2g)

B. Glassware
Funnel, filtration stand (retort stand, boss-head, and clamp), beaker (100 ml), glass rod, filter
paper, graduated cylinder, watch glass

C. Equipment
Hot plate, electronic balance

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Lecturer: Dr. Ali Nasr Abdulkareem Chemistry Lab

Procedure

1. Weigh 5g of sand in a watch glass and put it in a beaker (100ml).

2. Weigh cellulose powder (2g) using a watch glass and add it to the beaker with sand.
3. Add water (50 ml) to the beaker and stir the mixture with a glass rod.
4. Weigh a filter paper and filter the mixture using the simple filtration apparatus.
5. Fold the filter paper and put it in a watch glass, then leave it to dry in a lab oven for 30
min. at 80 ⁰C.
6. Dry the filtrate on a water bath until obtaining a dry powder.
7. Determine the weight of the organic compounds resulting from steps 5 and 6.
8. Discuss your results after estimating the change in weight of the dry compounds relative
to their initial weight.

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