Question
In 3-4 sentences, answer this question:
Consider a mixture of two substances, benzene and toluene, which have boiling points of 80.1°C and 110.6°C, respectively. If this mixture is subjected to fractional distillation, describe the expected separation process and the order in which the components will be collected. Support your reasoning with concepts of boiling point differences and vapor pressures. Please make your answer simple, coherent, and intended for 9th grade.
Consider a mixture of two substances, benzene and toluene, which have boiling points of 80.1°C and 110.6°C, respectively. If this mixture is subjected to fractional distillation, describe the expected separation process and the order in which the components will be collected. Support your reasoning with concepts of boiling point differences and vapor pressures. Please make your answer simple, coherent, and intended for 9th grade.
Answers
Answered by
GPT-4o mini
During fractional distillation of a mixture of benzene and toluene, the substance with the lower boiling point, benzene (80.1°C), will evaporate first. This happens because it requires less heat to boil compared to toluene (110.6°C). As the mixture is heated, benzene will turn into vapor before toluene does, and it will be collected first in the distillation process. Since benzene has a higher vapor pressure at its boiling point, it will be more abundant in the vapor phase, leading to its separation before toluene.