1.
a solution is created by dissolving a
 It is necessary to filter the solution
while still hot because according on
the principles of solubility,
compounds tend to be more soluble
in hot liquids, if you allowed it to
cool, the solute is no longer soluble
in the solvent and forms crystals of
pure compound.
 Because some of the compounds
will solidify and precipitate when the
solution is not hot. As a result the
compound will be collected as the
solid residue instead of the liquid
filtrate.
 A hot filtration is generally used in
some crystallization, when a solid
contains impurities that are insoluble
in the crystallization solvent. It is
also necessary in crystallization
when charcoal is used to remove
highly colored impurities from a
solid, as charcoal is so fine that it
cannot be removed by decanting.
 A filtration procedure called "hot
gravity filtration" is used to separate
insoluble impurities from a hot
solution. Hot filtrations require fluted
filter paper and careful attention to
the procedure to keep the apparatus
warm but covered so that solvent
does not evaporate. Hot gravity
filtrations are no longer included in
the routine procedures for the
experiments in the organic chemistry
teaching labs. If you need to do such
a filtration, read the procedure in the
Handbook and consult your TA.
 The principle behind recrystallization
is that the amount of solute that can
be dissolved by a solvent increases
with temperature. In recrystallization,
solute in a solvent at or near its
boiling point. At this high
temperature, the solute has a greatly
increased solubility in the solvent, so
a much smaller quantity of hot
solvent is needed than when the
solvent is at room temperature.
When the solution is later cooled,
after filtering out insoluble impurities,
the amount of solute that remains
dissolved drops precipitously. At the
cooler temperature, the solution is
saturated at a much lower
concentration of solute. The solute
that can no longer be held in solution
forms purified crystals of solute,
which can later be collected.
 Recrystallization works only when
the proper solvent is used. The
solute must be relatively insoluble in
the solvent at room temperature but
much more soluble in the solvent at
higher temperature. At the same
time, impurities that are present
must either be soluble in the solvent
at room temperature or insoluble in
the solvent at a high temperature.
 I assume you are talking
about recrystallisation, a
technique of purifcation of
solids.
A solvent is chosen which
will dissolve the compound of
interest when hot but not
cold, but not dissolve the
impurity when hot or cold.
The mixture is taken up in
the minimum amount of hot
solvent to dissolve all the
desired compound, filtered to
remove the insoluble impurity
and then allowed to cool. On
cooling the purified desired
 compound will crystallise out compound must be a solid at room
of solution. temperature. Recrystallization is
often used as a final clean-up step,
after other methods (such as
If you did not filter while hot,
extraction or column
then the solid which came chromatography) that are effective at
out of the cold solution would removing larger amounts of
still contain the insoluble impurities, but that do not raise the
impurities. purity of the final compound to a
 You filter the solution to sufficiently high level.
remove the insoluble
 In hot filtration, the impurity less
impurities. If not filtered hot,
soluble than the sample will remain
the solution might crystallize
on the filter paper.
quickly thus trapping the
insoluble impurities.  The funnel has to be kept hot , to
 Although the terms "crystallization" avoid crystallization on its stem .
and "recrystallization" are 
sometimes used interchangeably,
they technically refer to different
processes. Crystallization refers to
the formation of a new, insoluble
product by a chemical reaction; this
product then precipitates out of the
reaction solution as an amorphous
solid containing many trapped
impurities. Recrystallization does not
involve a chemical reaction; the
crude product is simply dissolved
into solution, and then the conditions
are changed to allow crystals to re-
form. Recrystallization produces a
more pure final product. For this
reason, experimental procedures
that produce a solid product by
crystallization normally include a
final recrystallization step to give the
pure compound.
 Recrystallization is a method of
purifying a compound by removing
any impurities that might be mixed
with it. It works best when the
compound is very soluble in a hot
solvent, but very insoluble in the cold
version of the same solvent. The
2. What are the methods of inducing crystal
formation from solution?
 liquid to evaporate (very
slowly)
 a) increasing
 The first thing is by
concentrations of the
"scratching" or rubbing
constituents until the
solubility constant the flask with a glass
conditions are reached. This rod or metal spatula. A
can be done by removing second tactic is the use
solvent, by adding one or of seed crystals. Taking
several constituents in just a few crystals from
concentrated form, or by
the previous crop and
changing the state of
putting them in your
constituents into the form
solution will promote the
that will cause
crystallization. growth of more crystals.
Often, it is enough to
b) providing nuclei for just stir the solution with
crystallization to avoid a spatula that has
formation of supersaturated touched some of the
solutions.
desired crystals.
 reduce the volume of the
 Supersaturated solutions hold more
solvent (boiling, solute than should be possible.
evaporation, low pressure) Hence they are very unstable.
 There are a few ways to make the
solute crystallize:
add solvent which the
 Put in a crystal of the solute.
solute is not soluble in, e.g. Sometimes any small particle, or
adding ethanol to water even dust, will do the trick.
precipitates some things  Scratch the glass container (on the
inside)
 A ferm knock or shake
cooling (and heating, when 
the solubility of the
compound relies on the
presence of a dissolved gas
e.g. CaCO3 - limescale)

 place a string in the

solution then allow the