Topic 1 - Chromotography

Question 1

how do you do paper chromatography?

Answer 1

1. draw a pencil line (baseline) at the bottom
2. add spots of different inks to the line
3. put the sheet into the solvent
4. make sure the solvent is below the baseline and place a lid on the container so the solvent doesn’t evaporate
5. the solvent will seep up the paper and the dyes will form a spot in a different place

Question 2

why does chromatography work?

Answer 2

different dyes move up the paper at different rates

Question 3

how do you calculate Rf values?

Answer 3

Rf = distance travelled by solute / distance travelled by solvent