The compounds biphenyl and naphthalene are presented in a mixture. Can hexane be used as a solvent to separate the compounds by column chromatography with silica gel as the stationary phase? Why or why not.

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ISBN:9781305957404
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The compounds biphenyl and naphthalene are presented in a mixture. Can hexane be used as a solvent to separate the compounds by column chromatography with silica gel as the stationary phase? Why or why not. 

Expert Solution
Step 1: Column chromatography

      Column chromatography is employed to separate, purify, and analyze complex mixtures of compounds based on their differential affinities for a stationary phase and a mobile phase within a column.Hexane is a suitable choice of solvent for the process of column chromatography when the objective is to separate a mixture containing biphenyl and naphthalene, with silica gel acting as the stationary phase. This separation is made feasible by exploiting the differences in the polarities of the two compounds and the inherent polarity of silica gel.

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