Will Fettkether

Irene Metz

General Chemistry I

9 September 2019

Separation of a Mixture

Beginning Questions:

1. What is the best approach to separate a mixture of NH4Cl, NaCl, and SiO2?

2. What is the most efficient method?

3. What is the percent mass of each component?

4. How does the starting quantity of mixture affect the percent results?

5. Initial predictions included: Sublimating the NH4Cl using a hot plate, dissolving the

remaining mixture in water, and filtering out the SiO2 would be the most efficient and

best approach to separating the mixture. The group also predicted a smaller starting

quantity would lead to more accurate percent results as there would be less chance that

some NH4Cl didn’t sublimate or NaCl didn’t dissolve

Safety Considerations: Goggles and gloves are a requirement for this lab. NH4Cl produces

fumes when heated, so either a fume hood or improvised chimney (a glass liquid funnel filled

with cotton balls) should be used while heating the mixture.

Procedures & Tests:

● Materials used in this experiment:

○ A mixture of SiO2, NaCl, and NH4Cl; two 400 mL beakers; a 100 mL graduated

flask; a large evaporating dish; a glass liquid funnel; balls of cotton; a hotplate;
 distilled water; a stirring rod; a plastic boat; filter paper; a ScoutPro electronic

balance; a scoopula and a spatula.

● The experiment was started by gathering between 2 - 5 g of the unknown mixture of

NH4Cl, SiO2, and NaCl

● A plastic boat was placed on a scale and tared, and the mass of the mixture was obtained

● The mixture was transferred to a large evaporating dish, which the group placed on a hot

plate

● Two small pieces of cotton were inserted into a glass funnel, and the funnel was placed

on top of the evaporating dish upside down, creating a chimney to absorb any fumes

● The hot plate was then turned on, and the NH4Cl was sublimated out of the mixture. The

group watched for white smoke as an indicator of the ammonium chloride’s sublimation

● The remaining mixture was transferred to a tared boat on a scale, and the new mass of the

mixture was obtained

● The mixture was then dissolved in 25 mL of water until the NaCl was completely

dissolved

● The group poured the solution into another beaker through filter paper until only wet

SiO2 could be observed in the original beaker

● The beaker containing SiO2 was heated on a hot plate to evaporate any remaining water,

until only SiO2 remained

● The remaining SiO2 was transferred to a plastic boat on a tared scale, and the mass of the

SiO2 was obtained

● The mass of NaCl in the mixture was calculated using the other obtained values

● Clean up from the lab was conducted by the group

Data, Observations, Calculation & Graphs

Observations:

● Funnel became foggy with vapor

● Cotton used during sublimation process took on a burnt/brownish appearance

● Math calculation & scale measurement of the mixture after sublimation yielded a 0.04 g

difference

● An error occurred when a tear appeared in the filter paper; causing SiO2 to fall through

and the group to redo the step

● Trace amounts of NaCl appeared to be intermingled with the dried SiO2

● A small amount of wet SiO2 was found adjacent to the dry SiO2 after measuring

Calculations:

● Beginning mass of mixture = 3.56 g

● Mass of mixture after sublimating NH4Cl = 2.98 g

○ Mass of NH4Cl = 0.58 g

● Mass of beaker with dry SiO2 = 167.30 g

○ Mass of dry SiO2 = 2.24 g

● Mass of NaCl = 3.56 g - 0.58 g - 2.24 g

○ Mass of NaCl = 0.74 g

● % NaCl = (0.74/3.56) * 100% = 20.8%

● % NH4Cl = (0.58/3.56) * 100% = 16.3%

● % SiO2 = (2.24/3.56) * 100% = 62.9%

Claims: Using only the group’s data, beginning question 3 for this report can be answered as the

percent mass of each component within the mixture were: 62.9% for SiO2, 16.3% for NH4Cl, and
20.8% for NaCl. The group can also claim that their methods used were some of the most

efficient, and that smaller masses of starting mixture prove for more precise results.

Evidence and Analysis: The first claim made can be supported using the data provided in the

data and calculations sections. The second claim is supported by the class data provided on

Canvas. While eight separate experiments were performed, only half of those yielded results that

added up to a round 100 percent. Because of this, we can support the claim that our method of

experimentation and calculation yielded more efficient results than others’. Our third claim can

be supported by the fact that out of the 7 experiments that gave end sums within 10% to 100%, 6

gave results that had SiO2 as the majority ingredient, with only 1 finding NaCl as the primary

component.

Reading and Post-Lab Reflections:

a. Throughout the group’s experiment, there were mistakes and errors that could be

attributed to miscalculating the correct percent mass of the mixture’s components. The

first one occurred with a tear in the filter paper during the first attempt at separating the

NaCl from the wet SiO2. This meant that the group had to redo this step, meaning that the

amounts of NaCl and SiO2 could’ve been lost/changed during the cleanup and

transferring. The second cause for error could be found in the residual NaCl that was

found with the measured SiO2, making the mass of the SiO2 component slightly higher.

The third error occurred post experiment and post calculation, when a group member

found a mass of wet SiO2 within the plastic boat that contain the measured and dried

SiO2. The group could not identify the origin of this mass, and whether or not it was part

of the original sample, and this could mean that extra mass due to either added SiO2 or

residual water was attributed to the SiO2’s percent mass.

b. Post-experiment, not many questions have changed for me, but after comparing our

experiments with the experiments and results of my classmates, a few new questions do

arise. The biggest one is how some people got less or more than 100% mixture. Most

likely it was due to a miscalculation, but there is also a chance that the others’ methods

could have led to a loss/gain of mass from the outside environs. I also wonder whether or

not fully separating the components made a difference. I feel that groups like mine, which

derived our NaCl mass simply from calculation, should more easily round exactly to

100%, while groups that actually separated and measured the salt were most likely to see

percent errors.

c. Post-lab Question: The students were not in fact successful at separating the component

out of the mixture. If they had, the mass should have been less than 2.386 g, and some

sort of smoke or vapor should have appeared to indicate the evaporation or sublimation of

a component. Instead, the group went in the other direction and found the mass of their

sample actually increased and changed in color. My hypothesis for this situation is that

by heating and cooling the mixture, some compounds or elements from the atmosphere

and environment where transferred into the mixture, thus increasing the mass and

changing the color.