Simple distillation is the process of taking two reactants, boiling them and then capturing the vapor through a tube and condensing it back to liquid in a beaker. Usually, a chemist will start off with two compounds. Each compound will be made up of two ions. During the process of distillation, only one ion from each compound will vaporize and as they are both condensed back into liquid, they bond together, forming a new compound. Distillation is the probably the most ancient experimental method that is still prevalent today. Historical records show ancient chemists as far back as 3000 BCE using the methods of distillation to form new products. The process was mainly used to create perfume or distill alcoholic for consumption.
The process of distillation is the same as simple distillation. The only difference is the compounds being used. Compounds that have multiple components, in other words are made up of more than two ions, cannot go through the simple distillation process. Instead they are placed in a fractional distillation apparatus. The set up for fractional distillation is the same as simple distillation except that a fractional column is used before the vapors are condensed into liquids. This fractional column separates the other ions from the desired ion by their boiling points, and then the desired ion is allowed to condense into liquid form while bonding to the other compound's desired ion.
To form a new compound, chemists use the recrystallization method,. In the process of recrystallization, two compounds are used. Each compound is made up of two ions. During this method, one compound will act as a solvent and the other compound will dissolve in the solvent. The method involves taking a compound and dissolving it in the solvent through heating and then cooling the compound/solvent. When the compound mixture is cooling, one ion from the compound and one ion from the solvent will crystallize in the water mixture. As these two compounds crystallize they will bond together and form a new product.
The method of extraction involves placing a compound in a solvent and then extracting one of its components out of the solution. The extraction method is usually performed on compounds that have different polarities and don't mix, such as oil and water. During extraction, the compound is placed in a solvent. The solvent is usually water. If the compound is in liquid form, it is swirled in the solvent to create a homogenous mixture. If the compound is in powder form, it is crushed into solvent so that there are no powder residues in the mixture. The compound mixture is then heated and the desired new compound is extracted and forms a new layer of solution. The solution is then placed in a beaker and then, using an eyedropper, the layer of new production is removed and placed into another beaker.