Why Chromatography Is Important
Have you ever wondered what colored dyes go into your favorite candies? Chromatography can solve that for you. Chromatography is a separation technique used by scientists for separating both organic and inorganic compounds. There are four different types of chromatography: thin layer, liquid, gas, and paper, but for this lab paper chromatography will be used. Who invented chromatography? A Russian botanist named Mikhail Semyonovich Tsvet invented chromatography in 1901 while doing research on plant pigments. Why is chromatography so important? This is because over 60% of all chemical analysis is done with one of the four types of chromatography. Police also use it to test cocaine in urine, alcohol in blood, and lead in water. Other uses for chromatography include to determine the colors leaves will turn into and unknown substances at the scene of a crime. One such use of chromatography is to
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determine what colored dyes go into your favorite candy. Paper chromatography, while less accurate, is the easiest and least expensive way to test for this. What colors do you think will come out of your favorite candy? Let’s find out. Paper chromatography utilizes a solvent front to attract the different colors of the candy. What is a solvent front? A solvent front is something like water, saltwater (which is used in our lab), or isopropyl alcohol that when applied to the paper will attract certain colors away from others. The paper is the other factor that will attract the colors. To determine how attracted each color is to either the water or the paper, you must determine the RF factor. To find this, divide the distance each color traveled by the total distance traveled by the entire dye. For example, if a blue dye traveled 2.5 cm in a purple candy that traveled 5.0 cm, then the Rf factor would be .5 (2.5/5.0). In the lab, many interesting results were found throughout our testing. Interested? Read on. Journal for Chromatography and Separation Techniques details how chromatography makes components more soluble through the mobile phase (when the solution is moving with the water). As a result, you will see a definitive separation as the solution begins to head towards the stationary phase (no movement). The article supports the belief that there will be multiple colored dyes due to the separation during the stationary phase. Due to the different solubility of the dyes in candy, there will be a great separation as the mobile phase makes the candy dyes more soluble. Stewart and Lomont (2014) show how the process of chromatography works in the book The Handy Chemistry Answer Book. It also defines chromatography as “a method for separating chemical compounds based on chemical properties as they travel over a distance” (2014). It also shows the technique of column (paper) chromatography. The book shows how it involves dissolving a mixture (or candy in the case of the lab) allows it to be separated into a solution (dye). As the dye travels through the stationary phase, the components will separate as some colors will be more attracted to the solvent (water) while other will be attracted to the solute (paper) (2014). Lowe describes the history of chromatography in the book The Chemistry Book. The author details Tsvet’s discovery of the process while testing liquefied plant extract on a column of powdered chalk (Calcium Carbonate). While testing he noticed that the sample began to separate as the liquid was applied to the extract. Taking from the Greek words for “Color Seeing” Tsvet discovered chromatography (2016). This technique has become very versatile in the world of chemistry. Not only is it used in forensic sciences, but it can also be used for plants like Tsvet or candy as in the lab. Science Olympiad details the possible measurements that are associated with chromatography.
One such measurement is RF factor. The RF factor is how far a particular compound travels in a particular solvent. In this lab, it is how fare the dyes travel in saltwater. If the RF factors are similar to the RF factors of the control (food coloring) then they are most likely the same dye. On the website the four types of chromatography are also specified with possible uses. Liquid chromatography can be used to look for pollution in lakes (Science Olympiad). It is also used to test metal ions which react strongly with water. Gas chromatography can be used to test to see if there are bombs at an airport or to test blood at a crime scene (Science Olympiad). Thin-layer chromatography is used to test the purity of an organic compounds or the dye composition of fibers (Science Olympiad). Finally, paper chromatography, utilized in this lab, is the most common form of chromatography and can be used for all of these tasks. However, it is cheaper and less reliable than the other
three. Bruno goes into great depth analyzing all four types of chromatography in the subtitle Basic Instrumental Techniques of Analytical Chemistry in the book Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. He defines the similarities between thin-layer and paper chromatography, as the only real difference between the two techniques is the material used (filter paper vs silica gel) (2014). The author also describes the process of paper/thin-layer chromatography as “a separation method in which a stationary phase coated on a sheet of plastic, paper, or glass is used with a mobile phase usually consisting of a solvent or mixture of solvents in a beaker” (2014). Finally, the author details gas and liquid chromatography and their techniques. Two scientists who worked with chromatography are James Watson and Francis Harry Compton Crick. Known as the inventors of DNA, they utilized chromatography to study the components of nucleic acids. They used their work to discover the deoxyribonucleic acid which is vital in the field of genetics today. The purpose of chromatography can be varied. It is used the field of forensic science to analyze a crime scene. In this lab it will be used to identify the contents of candy. Many harmful dyes are found in candy which can result in hyperactivity and dangerous diseases like cancer and asthma. Finally, it can be used to determine what colors will be found when leaves turn in the fall. Overall, the process of chromatography can be priceless to identify the contents of any organic or inorganic object. Its utilization in the field of science is revolutionary and will continue to be revolutionary in the future.
determine what colored dyes go into your favorite candy. Paper chromatography, while less accurate, is the easiest and least expensive way to test for this. What colors do you think will come out of your favorite candy? Let’s find out. Paper chromatography utilizes a solvent front to attract the different colors of the candy. What is a solvent front? A solvent front is something like water, saltwater (which is used in our lab), or isopropyl alcohol that when applied to the paper will attract certain colors away from others. The paper is the other factor that will attract the colors. To determine how attracted each color is to either the water or the paper, you must determine the RF factor. To find this, divide the distance each color traveled by the total distance traveled by the entire dye. For example, if a blue dye traveled 2.5 cm in a purple candy that traveled 5.0 cm, then the Rf factor would be .5 (2.5/5.0). In the lab, many interesting results were found throughout our testing. Interested? Read on. Journal for Chromatography and Separation Techniques details how chromatography makes components more soluble through the mobile phase (when the solution is moving with the water). As a result, you will see a definitive separation as the solution begins to head towards the stationary phase (no movement). The article supports the belief that there will be multiple colored dyes due to the separation during the stationary phase. Due to the different solubility of the dyes in candy, there will be a great separation as the mobile phase makes the candy dyes more soluble. Stewart and Lomont (2014) show how the process of chromatography works in the book The Handy Chemistry Answer Book. It also defines chromatography as “a method for separating chemical compounds based on chemical properties as they travel over a distance” (2014). It also shows the technique of column (paper) chromatography. The book shows how it involves dissolving a mixture (or candy in the case of the lab) allows it to be separated into a solution (dye). As the dye travels through the stationary phase, the components will separate as some colors will be more attracted to the solvent (water) while other will be attracted to the solute (paper) (2014). Lowe describes the history of chromatography in the book The Chemistry Book. The author details Tsvet’s discovery of the process while testing liquefied plant extract on a column of powdered chalk (Calcium Carbonate). While testing he noticed that the sample began to separate as the liquid was applied to the extract. Taking from the Greek words for “Color Seeing” Tsvet discovered chromatography (2016). This technique has become very versatile in the world of chemistry. Not only is it used in forensic sciences, but it can also be used for plants like Tsvet or candy as in the lab. Science Olympiad details the possible measurements that are associated with chromatography.
One such measurement is RF factor. The RF factor is how far a particular compound travels in a particular solvent. In this lab, it is how fare the dyes travel in saltwater. If the RF factors are similar to the RF factors of the control (food coloring) then they are most likely the same dye. On the website the four types of chromatography are also specified with possible uses. Liquid chromatography can be used to look for pollution in lakes (Science Olympiad). It is also used to test metal ions which react strongly with water. Gas chromatography can be used to test to see if there are bombs at an airport or to test blood at a crime scene (Science Olympiad). Thin-layer chromatography is used to test the purity of an organic compounds or the dye composition of fibers (Science Olympiad). Finally, paper chromatography, utilized in this lab, is the most common form of chromatography and can be used for all of these tasks. However, it is cheaper and less reliable than the other
three. Bruno goes into great depth analyzing all four types of chromatography in the subtitle Basic Instrumental Techniques of Analytical Chemistry in the book Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. He defines the similarities between thin-layer and paper chromatography, as the only real difference between the two techniques is the material used (filter paper vs silica gel) (2014). The author also describes the process of paper/thin-layer chromatography as “a separation method in which a stationary phase coated on a sheet of plastic, paper, or glass is used with a mobile phase usually consisting of a solvent or mixture of solvents in a beaker” (2014). Finally, the author details gas and liquid chromatography and their techniques. Two scientists who worked with chromatography are James Watson and Francis Harry Compton Crick. Known as the inventors of DNA, they utilized chromatography to study the components of nucleic acids. They used their work to discover the deoxyribonucleic acid which is vital in the field of genetics today. The purpose of chromatography can be varied. It is used the field of forensic science to analyze a crime scene. In this lab it will be used to identify the contents of candy. Many harmful dyes are found in candy which can result in hyperactivity and dangerous diseases like cancer and asthma. Finally, it can be used to determine what colors will be found when leaves turn in the fall. Overall, the process of chromatography can be priceless to identify the contents of any organic or inorganic object. Its utilization in the field of science is revolutionary and will continue to be revolutionary in the future.