Name _________________________________________ Date _______________ Period _____ Group _____
Lab 1.5 – Separation of Mixture
Background:
A mixture is a combination of two or more pure substances that retain their separate chemical
identities and properties. Since the amounts of each substance making up a mixture can be changed,
the physical properties of a mixture depend on its composition. In contrast, the composition of a pure
substance is constant, and thus pure substances have characteristic physical properties that do not
change. Examples of physical properties that can be used to describe pure substances include
solubility, conductivity, magnetism, density, boiling point, and melting point.
By taking advantage of the unique physical properties of individual components within a
mixture, it should be possible to separate a mixture into its components. For example, if one
component in a mixture of two solids dissolves in water, while a second component does not, the
components can be separated by adding water to the mixture and then filtering residue.
Purpose:
The purpose of this experiment is to study the physical properties of salt, sand, and iron and use
this information to design and carry out a procedure to separate a mixture of these substances. The
mass percent composition and percent recovery of the mixture can be calculated from the mass of the
recovered components.
Materials:
Iron (Fe) filings
Sand (SiO2)
Sugar (C12H22O11)
Balance
3 Beakers (150ml)
Distilled water and wash
bottle
Hot plate
Filter funnel and filter paper
Magnet
Plastic bag
Ring stand and ring
Teaspoons, 3
Weighing dishes (1 oz), 3
Name _________________________________________ Date _______________ Period _____ Group _____
Procedure:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Transfer a teaspoon of sugar, sand, and iron filings into three 3 separate weighed beakers.
Observe the physical appearance of each substance. Record.
Weigh and record each beaker with the solids.
Magnetic attraction:
a. Insert a magnet into a plastic bag so that no surface of the magnet is exposed. Move the
wrapped magnet through each substance in the 3 beakers. Record all observations.
b. Do NOT place the bare magnet directly into the materials. It will be difficult to remove the
magnetic material from the surface of the magnet.
c. To remove the magnetic material, carefully open the bag and remove the magnet. The
magnetic material will fall off the bag (back into the weighing dish) when the magnet is
removed
5. Solubility:
a. Sand and iron are not soluble in water.
b. Sugar is soluble in water.
6. Combine the 3 samples of sand, sugar and iron. Mix together and observe the combination.
Describe its physical appearance.
7. Use the principle of magnetic attraction to separate the iron from the mixture.
8. Use the principle of solubility to remove the sugar from the mixture.
9. Prepare a Bunsen burner to boil off the water used to dissolve the sugar. This may take A WHILE!
10. Weigh out each separate substance.
11. Compare the separated weights to the original weights.
12. What is the recovery factor for each sample?
13. What is the percent composition for each substance in your mixture?
14. Calculate the percent composition of each component of the mixture using the following equation.
mass of component
percent mass 
*100%
total mass of mixture
Name _________________________________________ Date _______________ Period _____ Group _____
Data:
Part A: Determining Physical Properties of Substances
Substance
Physical Appearance
Magnetism
Solubility in Water
Physical Appearance
Magnetism
Solubility in Water
Salt
Sand
Iron
Sand + Salt
Part B: Preparing the mixture
Mass of Component
Percent Mass of Component
Mass of Recovered Component
Percent Recovery of Component
Salt
Sand
Iron
Total Mass of Mixture
Part C: Separation of a Mixture
Salt
Sand
Iron
Total Mass of Recovered
Mixture
Name _________________________________________ Date _______________ Period _____ Group _____
Part C: Separation of a Mixture
Procedure:
Additional Data: Record all weights used to determine mass of recovered components.