Which method can be used to separate solid sugar from a solution of sugar water?

• A. Distillation
• B. Filtration
• C. Evaporation
• D. Chromatography

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the nature of the mixture: sugar dissolved in water forms a homogeneous solution, where sugar molecules are dispersed at the molecular level and cannot be separated by simple physical means like filtration.
2. Evaluate filtration: Filtration works by separating solids from liquids when the solid particles are large enough to be trapped by a filter. Since sugar is dissolved, it passes through the filter along with water, so filtration is ineffective here.
3. Consider distillation: Distillation separates components based on differences in boiling points. Since sugar does not evaporate but water does, distillation can separate water from sugar by boiling off the water, leaving sugar behind.
4. Examine evaporation: Evaporation involves allowing the solvent (water) to vaporize naturally or by heating, leaving the dissolved solid (sugar) behind. This method is simple and effective for recovering sugar from sugar water.
5. Chromatography is used to separate components based on their movement through a medium and is more suited for separating mixtures of different solutes, not for recovering a solid from a solution like sugar from sugar water.