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 p K 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.