--Year 7 Science

UNIT: Chemical Science (Mixtures)

TASK TYPE: Practical
Sand, Salt & Metal GOOD COPY

Aim What is the aim of the experiment?

The aim of the experiment is to separate the iron fillings, table salt and the sand back to their own substances.
Materials things you will need – you will need to determine the rest? What will you need?
 Sand
 Salt
 Iron fillings
 Magnet
 Conical flask
 Filter funnel
 Bunsen burner
 Tripod stand
 Evaporating dish
 Gauze mat
 Filtering paper
 Glass rod
 Tile
 Matches
 Water
 Paper (for magnet)
 Beaker x3
Method write your method. You need to give the exact instructions so someone else could follow it and get the same
results.
1. Put your safety equipment (safety goggle and apron) on. You will need goggles for when you use the Bunsen
burner.
2. Collect the equipment that you need for the practical.
3. Put the mixture containing the iron fillings, sand, and table salt in a plastic dish.
4. Place the paper over the top and put the magnet over the paper to attract the iron fillings. This will separate
the iron fillings from the mixture.
5. Lift the paper while keeping the magnet in contact. Put the piece of paper carefully over the beaker and
release iron fillings.
6. Put the sand and salt mixture in a separate beaker.
7. Fill the beaker with the sand and salt mixture with 150mL of water.
8. Put filter funnel and filtering paper into a conical flask. Then pour salt and sand mixture through the filter
funnel using a glass rod.
9. The sand that is stuck in the filter funnel will be needed to be put in a separate beaker. Put the saltwater in an
evaporating dish.
10. Set up the Bunsen Burner, Gauze mat, and Tile.
11. Put the evaporating dish on top of the Gauze mat.
12. Turn on the gas tap and evaporate the salt water, the water will be evaporated, and the salt will be left
behind. Make sure you have your goggles on for when the water starts to spit.
13. Evaporate until there is no more water, and the salt is left over.
14. Turn off the Bunsen burner when the water is evaporated, and the salt has turned into a powder. There now
should be iron fillings in a beaker, sand in a beaker and salt (which has turned into powder).
15. Pack all your equipment up and clean your station.
Results (can include photos): observations of what you saw when you separated your sample

Magnetic Water Soluble

Material IRON (Yes/ No)
Yes
(Yes/ No)
No

Observations (was your technique of separation accurate [yes/ no] & why/ why not?)
Our separation technique was to use the magnet to separate the iron fillings from the mixture.
This technique was accurate but, the technique took an exceptionally long time to make sure
that the iron fillings are separated from the sand and salt mixture. There were also some iron
fillings in the mixture left. This happened because the iron fillings were buried in the mixture
and the magnet was not strong enough. This could have been done differently by using a
stronger magnet to attract the iron fillings. As shown in the picture, there were also some
sand particles in the iron fillings that got separated. This happened because some of the sand particles were stuck to
the iron fillings and the iron fillings got attracted with the sand. The separating technique to separate iron fillings was
mostly accurate.

Magnetic Water Soluble

Material SALT (Yes/ No)
No
(Yes/ No)
Yes

Observations (was your technique of separation accurate [yes/ no] & why/ why not?)
The technique that was used to separate the salt and water was to use the Bunsen
Burner to evaporate the water so that the salt stays behind. This technique was
accurate because, the water evaporated successfully, and the salt became powder.
This happened because, the Bunsen Burner made the water to boil, and then the
water evaporated, turning into a gas. The water being evaporated caused the salt to
turn into a powder. The separating technique that was used was successful.

Magnetic Water Soluble

Material SAND (Yes/ No)
No
(Yes/ No)
No

Observations (was your technique of separation accurate [yes/ no] & why/ why not?)
The technique that was used to separate the sand from the salt and water was
to filter. Filtering paper and a filter funnel was used to filter the sand. The
mixture got poured through and the salt and water went through to the conical
flask while, the sand stayed behind. This happened because, the salt is water
soluble and the salt can dissolve in water, meanwhile sand is not water
soluble, and the sand cannot dissolve in water. The mixture got filtered and the
sand got separated from the salt water. However, there were some problems.
Some of the salt stayed behind in the sand. This happened because, the sand
was clogging up the filter funnel and the salt that was left behind could not come through. The technique that was
used to separate the sand from the salt and water was mostly accurate.

Discussion Questions (Answer the following questions in full sentence form – each question should have a
minimum of 2 sentences)
1. Were you able to fully separate the three compounds? Give evidence from the practical to support your answer.
The three substances were not able to fully separate. The three substances were not able to fully separate because, in
the results, some of the iron fillings were still in the salt and sand mixture and some of the salt was still in the sand.
This happened because of a few reasons.
One of the reasons was that the iron fillings was buried in the sand and the magnet could not attract the iron fillings
because of the sand. Another reason for the iron fillings not being able to fully separate was because the magnet
was not strong enough to attract the iron fillings. One of the reasons for the salt not being able to fully separate from
the sand is that the sand was stuck in the filter funnel and was blocking the salt from coming through.
Another example of the solution not being able to separate fully was that the salt dissolved in the wet sand. This
happened because the water that was left behind in the sand contained the salt and the solution could not be
separated fully.
2. Was the method effective? Why do you say this? Give evidence from the practical to support your answer.
In the results, the method was effective. The solution got separated very easily. This happened because, the iron
fillings are magnetic, the salt is water soluble, and the sand is neither water soluble nor magnetic. The iron fillings
got separated by using the magnet because the iron fillings are magnetic. The salt dissolved in the water and got
evaporated by using the Bunsen Burner since salt can dissolve in water. The sand got separated by being filtered
from the saltwater using a conical flask and filter funnel because sand is not water soluble or magnetic. The
substances got separated by using their own separation technique which were, magnetic, evaporation and
filtering/decanting.
3. Were the results as good as they can be? Explain why/Why not.
The results of the practical were good but, they could be better. This is because, the substances were not fully
separated. The substances got separated but not fully separated. Some of the iron fillings were still left in the sand
and salt mixture because, the iron fillings had been buried underneath the mixture and the magnet was not strong
enough. Some of the sand particles were also in the iron fillings. This happened because the sand got stuck to the
iron fillings and the sand got attracted with the iron fillings by the magnet. The salt had also been left in the sand
because, the sand was stuck in the filter funnel, and was blocking the salt from coming through.
4. Give two examples of what you would do differently next time to obtain better results
One thing that could be done differently would be to use a stronger magnet so that the iron fillings could be
separated fully. Another thing that could be done differently to separate the iron fillings, would be to separate the
iron fillings from the sand in small parts. This could be done by separating the mixture into small parts and then
using the magnet to separate the iron fillings in small parts. Another thing that could be done differently, is to
change the filter paper whenever the filter paper got clogged up. The sand kept on getting stuck in the filter funnel
and was blocking the salt water from coming through.

Conclusion: A concluding statement of the overall experiment and whether it was successful or not.
The techniques that were used were magnetic, filtering/decanting and evaporating. Overall, the separating
techniques that were used were accurate but, the substances were not fully separated. This happened because of a
few reasons, the magnet was not strong enough, the filtering paper got clogged up and the iron fillings were buried
underneath the sand. This could be obtained by using a stronger magnet and changing the filtering paper each time
the filter paper got clogged up.