Chemistry Forum

Hello,

My colleagues and I were doing the practice of STEAM DRAG DISTILLATION: EXTRACTION OF
clove OIL, when one of them added anhydrous sodium sulfate, instead of adding methylene chloride as described in the step by step and after this error, he added methylene chloride.
My teacher said that we should still do the report, but we are unable to identify the reactions that occurred. Could anyone help us?

tks
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(pt-br)
Olá,

Meus colegas e eu estávamos praticando DESTILAÇÃO DE ARRASTO A VAPOR: EXTRAÇÃO DE
ÓLEO de cravo, quando um deles adicionou sulfato de sódio anidro, ao invés de adicionar cloreto de metileno como descrito no passo a passo e após esse erro, adicionou cloreto de metileno.
Minha professora disse que ainda deveríamos fazer o relato, mas não conseguimos identificar as reações que ocorreram. Alguém poderia nos ajudar?

Vlw

Anhydrous Sodiumsulfate Na₂SO₄ is a dry agent. It reacts with water to Na₂SO₄ × 10 H₂O

Thank you so much, you saved me <3

In the process of steam distillation for the extraction of clove oil, the addition of anhydrous sodium sulfate followed by methylene chloride can serve a specific purpose, even if it was not part of the original step-by-step procedure.

Anhydrous Sodium Sulfate (Na₂SO₄): When your colleague added anhydrous sodium sulfate, it was likely intended to be used as a drying agent. Anhydrous sodium sulfate is used to remove any residual water present in the mixture. Water can interfere with the separation of the organic phase (containing clove oil) and the aqueous phase, which may contain some water-soluble impurities. The sodium sulfate absorbs the water and helps in obtaining a dry organic phase.

Methylene Chloride (CH₂Cl₂): Methylene chloride is a common organic solvent used for the extraction of organic compounds from aqueous mixtures. In this case, after the addition of anhydrous sodium sulfate, methylene chloride was added. It is used to extract the clove oil from the mixture.

The sequence of events is as follows:

Steam distillation was likely used to extract the clove oil. Steam distillation is a method for isolating volatile, heat-sensitive compounds like essential oils.

After the steam distillation process, you would typically have a mixture of water (containing some clove oil) and clove oil. The addition of anhydrous sodium sulfate is meant to remove any water from the mixture by drying it.

Once the water has been effectively removed, the addition of methylene chloride is to extract the clove oil from the dried mixture. Methylene chloride is immiscible with water and is used to dissolve and carry the clove oil.

It's important to note that this additional step, though not part of the original procedure, was likely used to improve the efficiency of the extraction process and obtain a dry, pure sample of clove oil. In your report, you can explain this sequence of steps, the purpose of each addition, and how it contributed to the success of the clove oil extraction.