Physical Means of Separating Mixtures

The substances in mixtures can be separated physically through decantation, evaporation, or filtration. You can also separate substances using a sieve or a magnet.

Decantation
Decantation is the process of separating the components of a mixture by pouring the liquid component from one container to another, without disturbing the lower layer or sediments in a mixture. Decantation is used to separate solids from liquids. For example, the sand in a sand-and-water mixture can be separated from water by letting the sand settle at the bottom of the container and then carefully pouring the water into another container. Decantation is also applied when washing rice grains before cooking. In this process, water is poured out slowly from the pot, leaving the rice grains behind.

In a mixture of two immiscible liquids, such as oil and water, one substance stays on top of the other substance in the container. One way of separating substances in such mixtures is through decantation. In the case of the oil-and-water mixture, oil can be separated by decanting or slowly pouring it into another container, leaving the water behind.