Barring a few exceptions, almost every element or compound is found in an impure state i.e. as a mixture of two or more substances - thus the need to separate it into its individual components so as to make it more productive. Its applications in the field of chemical engineering can be very important. The best example that can be cited here is that of crude. Crude is a mixture of various hydrocarbons (though valuable in itself), there is a greater demand for the various hydrocarbons that it is a mixture of, viz. gasoline, diesel, etc. Enter separation processes!! The term element can refer to: Chemical element — material that consists of atoms with the same number of protons in the nucleus (see also Periodic table). ... A compound is an area of land that is surrounded by fences, walls, or barbed wire and is used for a particular purpose, especially an area containing buildings and where the entry and exit of people is controlled. ... Chemical engineering is the application of science, mathematics and economics to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms. ... Nodding donkey pumping an oil well near Sarnia, Ontario, 2001 Petroleum (from Latin petrus – rock and oleum – oil), mineral oil, or crude oil, sometimes colloquially called black gold, is a thick, dark brown or greenish flammable liquid, which exists in the upper strata of some areas of the Earths...

These processes can essentially be termed as a mass-transfer process. The classification can be based on the means of separation, i.e. purely mechanical or chemical. Ordinarily the choice of separation depends on the pros and cons of each. For systems that can not be separated by purely mechanical means (eg. crude), chemical separation is the way out. The mixture at hand could be a solid-solid, solid-liquid, solid-gas, liquid-liquid or liquid-gas mixture.

Like already mentioned above the phases could exist as a combination of any two or more states (solid, liquid or gas). Depending on the combination, various processes like distillation, absorption, adsorption, stripping, extraction, leaching, crystallization etc. can be employed to separate the mixtures. Some times two or more of these processes have to be used in combination to obtain the desired separation. In addition to these 'chemical' processes, other purely mechanical processes such as filtration, gravity separation etc. can also be applied where possible. Strathisla whisky distillery in Keith, Scotland Distillation is a means of separating liquids through differences in their vapor pressures. ... Absorption has a number of meanings: In physics, absorption is a process in which particles of some sort encounter another material and are taken up by or even disappear in it. ... In chemistry, adsorption of a substance is its concentration on a particular surface. ... In chemistry, liquid-liquid extraction is a useful method to separate components (compounds) of a mixture. ... Leaching is the process of extracting a substance from a solid by dissolving it in a liquid. ... Crystal (disambiguation) Insulin crystals A crystal is a solid in which the constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are packed in a regularly ordered, repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. ... The article is about the separation process. ...

See also

Separation process In chemistry and chemical engineering, a separation process is a process that transforms a mixture of substances into two or more compositionally-distinct products. ...