Answer Happy

Student A set up a distillation to separate the components of 3.0 mL of a cyclohexane- toluene mixture using the microscale apparatus. The student insulated the neck of the boiling flask and wrapped a damp piece of paper towel around the side arm of the distillation head, The student then proceeded to heat the mixture rapidly on the sand-bath. The mixture was allowed to boil vigorously. When the first drop of distillate was collected, the thermometer reading was 75.5°C. Within the next 5 minutes, a total of 23 drops of distillate had been collected into one vial and the thermometer reading had risen to 83.2 °C. At this point, the distillation was stopped because only approximately 0.5 mL of liquid remained in the bottom of the boiling flask. Explain why this student should restart this distillation with a fresh sample. Discuss the mistakes that the student made, what effect those mistakes have on the separation, and what the student should do differently in their second attempt.