Question

Give reason: Alcohol and water cannot be separated from a mixture using a separating funnel.

Answer 1

• A separating funnel is a glass apparatus used for separating two immiscible liquids i.e. liquids that do not mix.
• Alcohol and water are miscible liquids, that is they can mix uniformly.
• Hence, a mixture of alcohol and water cannot be separated by a separating funnel, but they can be separated by fractional distillation which is the process of separation of miscible liquids.

Thus, alcohol and water cannot be separated from a mixture using a separating funnel.