Examples of Mixtures
Mixtures can be either homogeneous or heterogeneous. A homogeneous mixture is a type of mixture in which the composition is uniform and every part of the solution has the same properties. A heterogeneous mixture is a type of mixture in which the components can be seen, as there are two or more phases present. One example of a mixture is air. Air is a homogeneous mixture of the gaseous substances nitrogen, oxygen, and smaller amounts of other substances. Salt, sugar, and many other substances dissolve in water to form homogeneous mixtures. A homogeneous mixture in which there is both a solute and solvent present is also a solution. Mixtures can have any amounts of ingredients.
The following table shows the main properties of the three families of mixtures.
Mixture homogeneity | Homogeneous | Visually homogeneous but microscopically heterogeneous | Heterogeneous |
Particle size | < 1 nanometer | between 1 nanometer and 1 micrometer | > 1 micrometer |
Physical stability | Yes | Yes | No: needs stabilizing agents |
Tyndall effect | No | Yes | Yes |
Separates by centrifugation | No | Yes | - |
Separates by decantation | No | No | Yes |
The following table shows examples of the three types of mixtures.
Dissolved or dispersed phase | Continuous medium | Solution | Colloid | Coarse dispersion |
---|---|---|---|---|
Gas | Gas | Gas mixture: air (oxygen and other gases in nitrogen) | None | None |
Liquid | Gas | None | Aerosols of liquid particles: fog, mist, vapor, hair sprays | Aerosol |
Solid | Gas | None | Aerosols of solid particles: smoke, cloud, air particulates | Solid aerosol: dust |
Gas | Liquid | Solution: oxygen in water | Liquid foam: whipped cream, shaving cream | Foam |
Liquid | Liquid | Solution: alcoholic beverages | Emulsion: miniemulsion, microemulsion | Emulsion: milk, mayonnaise, hand cream |
Solid | Liquid | Solution: sugar in water | Liquid sol: pigmented ink, blood | Suspension: mud (soil, clay or silt particles are suspended in water), chalk powder suspended in water |
Gas | Solid | Solution: hydrogen in metals | Solid foam: aerogel, styrofoam, pumice | Foam: dry sponge |
Liquid | Solid | Solution: amalgam (mercury in gold), hexane in paraffin wax | Gel: agar, gelatin, silicagel, opal | Wet sponge |
Solid | Solid | Solution: alloys, plasticizers in plastics | Solid sol: cranberry glass | Gravel, granite |
Read more about this topic: Mixture
Famous quotes containing the words examples of, examples and/or mixtures:
“Histories are more full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends.”
—Alexander Pope (16881744)
“Histories are more full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends.”
—Alexander Pope (16881744)
“If thought makes free, so does the moral sentiment. The mixtures of spiritual chemistry refuse to be analyzed.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (18031882)