2 g of Aspirin is dissolved in 30 mL of dichloromethane then 10 mL of sodium bicarbonate is added. This mixture is poured into a separatory funnel and shaken. What compound(s) will be present in the upper layer?

Question

aaronq · Answer

Which solvent is polar?  Which is denser?

Is aspiring more polar or non-polar?

anonymous · Answer

i dont know the density of each compound because i will be performing an experiment on it to write out the density.  
would the aspirin be the top layer since it an organic compound?

aaronq · Answer

you can look up the densities of the solvents (or solutions which is what NaHCO3 is) online.

Aspirin will get deprotonated by NaHCO3 and will be more water soluble

anonymous · Answer

okay, so the aspirin is less dense than sodium bicarbonate, and it would form the upper layer, but then if it is mixed with DCM, would that change the density?

aaronq · Answer

not the density aspirin, but the density of the two solvents you're partitioning between; DCM and water.

anonymous · Answer

oh.. water is less dense. so then it would form the upper layer.. right?

aaronq · Answer

yes

anonymous · Answer

so would the answer just be water that is formed in the upper layer?

aaronq · Answer

water wasn't formed (it was there when you added the NaHCO3 solution).

aaronq · Answer

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anonymous · Answer

if H2CO3 will probably mostly be in H2o, then it would form the upper layer?