From Observation to Prediction to Application: A Guided Exercise for Liquid-Liquid Extraction

In this organic chemistry laboratory experiment, students are guided through a series of exercises to understand the behavior of compounds during liquid -liquid extraction. Aspects of density, structure, solubility, acid-base theory, and pK(a) are all incorporated into activities that students complete in groups. After using their initial observations to make predictions about the two colored compounds, nile blue and 2,6-dichloroindophenol, students check the reliability of their predictions by carrying out liquid-liquid extractions of these compounds in the laboratory. The set of exercises culminates in the application of the procedures to a real-world situation.