Setting up a distillation for the first time can seem to be quite a puzzle: just how do all these pieces of glassware go together? Where should I start? Where does the water go in? The steam? The following sections on "Distillation Set-up" should help ease you into your first laboratory distillation experience. Go through the web pages below before your first distillation, and again as needed as a "refresher".
The link below takes you to a complete simple distillation glassware set-up. Click on different parts of the set-up picture to learn the names and descriptions of the pieces of glassware.
The following series of small pictures illustrate the different steps in a simple distillation set-up. Click on a small picture to see the large version and a description. To see the series in order, simply click on picture "1". On each page, the outlined small picture in the navigation table indicates the page you are on.
Disclaimer: the steps below illustrate one good way to set up a distillation. If you observed seasoned organic chemists in the lab, they would each set it up in slightly different manners. This series of steps is designed for the beginning distiller, to get you started in a logical and safe manner.
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entire set-up |
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