OUR FAVORiTE EXPERIMENT (TLC)

        Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) is a simple, quick, and inexpensive procedure that gives the chemist a quick answer as to how many components are in a mixture. TLC plate is a sheet of glass, metal, or plastic which is coated with a thin layer of a solid absorbent (usually silica or alumina). A small amount of the mixture to be analyzed is spotted near the bottom of this plate.

        The TLC plate is placed in a shallow pool of a solvent in a developing chamber so that only the very bottom of the plate is in the liquid. The liquid, or the eluent, is the mobile phase, and it slowly rises up the TLC plate by capillary action.

(The picture used is copied from the internet)

To view the components of the mixture, the TLC plate is placed with solid iodine in a glass jar.

(The picture used is copied from the internet)

If  the components cannot be viewed after using iodine, ultraviolet ray can be used to view the components.

     (The picture used is copied from the internet)

For TLC demonstration, watch TLC demonstration in Youtube by searching  Introduction to Thin Layer Chromatography

       In conclusion, TLC is a useful method in separating mixtures according to their polarity. For further information on TLC, refer website: http://www.chemguide.co.uk/analysis/chromatography/thinlayer.html