Question

Describe the principle of fractional distillation with an illustration.

Answer 1

Hint: We know that fraction distillation is a very famous process of separating components of a mixture. Fraction distillation can be defined as a process where separation of a mixture takes place. A mixture of various components such as chemical components can be easily vaporized by heating them to a temperature more than their boiling point and forming different fractions.

Complete step by step solution:
Principle of fraction distillation – The principle of fraction distillation is based on the difference of the boiling points of the components of the mixture. When the mixture is heated up the impurities shows different boiling points and can be separated easily with the help of an outlet pipe.
Example- We can understand this process with an illustration. The fraction distillation of water and ethanol is an example of this process. Ethanol has boiling point ${78.5^0}C$ whereas water has boiling point ${100^0}C$. So these can be separated with fraction distillation as there is quite a difference between the boiling point of the two components. A mixture of $96\%$ Ethanol and $4\%$ water when heated it produces $96\%$ Ethanol and water evaporates. A mixture of acetone and water also can be separated with fraction distillation method.

Note: We have learned that the principle of fraction distillation is on difference of the boiling points of the components of mixture. This is the most common form of separation technology which is very famous in petroleum refineries, chemical plants and natural gas processing. Fraction distillation is also performed in oil industries to separate crude oil into useful substances.