Name: Hourmat Abdul Rauf

Organic Chemistry Lab I (course #): 201

Professor name: Edwin Jahngen
Date: 9/21/2010
Title: Simple Distillation of Cyclohexane
Abstract:
The goal of this lab was to purify a substance that is volatile. In this experiment simple
distillation was used, a technique that is used to purify cyclohexane. During this lab, 10 ml of
Cyclohexane was added into a flask to stir and heated to it’s boiling point. When it reached it’s
boiling point, the vapor transferred into the receiver which is a flask that purified cyclohexane is
transferred to. When the cyclohexane was transferred into the flask, it needed to calculate its
refractive index, the normal for cyclohexane is 1.4264 @ 20 C. Refractive index that was
obtained for cyclohexane was 1.4274 @ 20 C.
Introduction:
Distillation is a method for separating pure liquids from other substance that is volatile.
The way to do this experiment is to put the pure liquid into a stillpot or also called distillation
flask till it reaches its boiling point. When some of the liquid vaporizes, the vapor will be passed
from the pot to the water- or air-cooled condenser where it will be condensed into the flask
which called the receiver, a flask that the purified cyclohexane is transferred to.
The reason why this technique was used is to to separate a reaction product from the
solvents used for the reaction. The purpose of this experiment is to demonstrate the technique for
purification of volatile organic liquid containing a nonvolatile impurity.

Physical properties: Presented in a Table Format

Name Structural Molecular Molecular Density Melting Boiling Refractive
formula formula weight point indexes
point
Cyclohexane C6H12 84.18 0.799 6.5 C 80.7 C 1.4264 @
g/mol g/ml 20 C

Procedure:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Simple_distillation_apparatus.png

1) Apparatus was set up.

2) a 25ml round bottom flask is needed along with apparatus for distillation, a magnetic stirring,
and flameless heating.
3) 10 ml of cyclohexane containing a nonvolatile dye in the round bottom flask will be placed.
4) stir bar to the flask will be added to ensure smooth boiling.
5) the apparatus will be set up as it is told in the procedure above.
6) The magnetic stirrer will be obtained and will begin heating the stillpot.
7) When the liquid reaches it’s boiling point the condensing vapor have reached the
thermometer’s bulb, check the heat supply so that distillation continues steadily at rate of 2-4
drops per second.
8) Notebook will be updated constantly when changes are made and observed
9) Continue with the distillation and constantly record the heat temperature.
9) Stop heating when 2-3 ml of impure cyclohexane remains in the flask. Record the volume of
cyclohexane that obtained.
10) refractive index was measured and the lab bench was cleaned.

Conclusion

My partner and I obtained 1.4274 from the refractive index, the goal of this experiment
was to be as close as 1.4264. The lab that my partner and I did was 99.92% correct. Some
problems were that we were not sure of what the temperature it needed to be, we would turn the
heat up and down to vapor cyclohexane faster, which is not the right way to do it. We heated the
flask from 180 C to 260 C and back to 180 C then to 110 C and we left it at 260 C to have its
boiling point and vaporize the solution. The heat temperature needed to be a constant, and next
time we do this lab, the temperature will be constant.

References:

Simple distillation apparatus

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Simple_distillation_apparatus.png
Date of access 9/13/2010

Lab manual
CRC
Textbook