What is the Difference Between Separation and Purification?

Separation and purification are two connected procedures in analytical chemistry that involve the transformation of a mixture of substances into distinct product mixtures and the removal of pollutants from an analyte sample, respectively. The key difference between them is:

• Separation: This process involves the conversion of a mixture of substances into two or more distinct product mixtures. Techniques used for separation include chromatography, electrophoresis, flotation, and extraction.
• Purification: This process involves the removal of contaminants from an analyte sample to obtain a purer form of the material. Methods used for purification include affinity purification, filtration, chromatography, adsorption, and extraction.

In summary, separation focuses on transforming a mixture into distinct product mixtures, while purification aims to remove impurities from a sample to obtain a purer form of the material. Both processes are essential in various fields, such as medicine and manufacturing, and have numerous applications in analytical chemistry.

Comparative Table: Separation vs Purification

The main difference between separation and purification is that separation involves the conversion of a mixture of substances into two or more products, while purification involves the removal of contaminants from an analyte sample to produce a purer form of the substance. Here is a table summarizing the differences between separation and purification:

Some examples of separation methods include distillation, which is based on differences in boiling points of substances, and chromatography, which is based on differences in the way components of a mixture become distributed. On the other hand, some examples of purification methods include affinity purification, filtration, chromatography, adsorption, extraction, crystallization, recrystallization, and others.