Separating a mixture — Recovering iron, sand and salt

Start with the magnet to recover iron, then try adding water and filtering.

Selected sampleFollow a substanceWater added each time

Start with the magnet to recover iron, then try adding water and filtering.

▰ Iron 5 g

● Sand 10 g

◇ Solid salt 5 g

Mixing beaker

Component masses calculated by the model

Start with the magnet to recover iron, then try adding water and filtering.

Iron0 / 5 g

Not fully separated

Sand0 / 10 g

Not fully separated

Solid salt0 / 5 g

Not fully separated

Water evaporated: 0 g

Model notes

The sample contains 5 g of iron filings, 10 g of clean non-magnetic sand and 5 g of NaCl. These substances do not react with each other.
NaCl solubility is rounded to 36 g per 100 g of water at 20 °C; 1 mL of water is approximated as 1 g. Displayed masses are model calculations.
Evaporation is sped up at a reference temperature of 20 °C; boiling and real rates are not simulated. Stirring illustrates handling; salt can also dissolve without stirring.
Magnetic separation, pouring and filtration are ideal: rust, handling losses, salt evaporation and water retained in sand or paper are excluded. Full recovery in the model does not guarantee experimental yield; the sand is not described as oven-dried.
Particles and liquid levels are illustrations, not a way to count actual grains or measure solution volume. Ions, magnetic forces and heat transfer are not simulated.

Chemistry

Separating a mixture — Recovering iron, sand and salt

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