10: T-Shirt Chromatography

Chromatography is an important technique used by chemists to separate mixtures of chemicals. You may have carried out paper chromatography in lessons. Now try it out on a T-shirt.

What you will need

access to a fume cupboard
T-shirt, pre-washed (preferably white and 100% cotton)
large plastic bag
permanent felt-tip pens
4dm3 glass beaker or similar container

eye protection
disposable plastic gloves (to protect hands from staining) 		ethanol
textile medium (optional)

What you do

  1. Eye Protection
    Use a pre-washed T-shirt. A white one made of 100% cotton is best.
  2. Lay the T-shirt flat on a table. Place a sheet of paper or plastic inside the shirt to prevent ink going through from front to back.
  3. Choose your pens and draw a design on to the shirt.
  4. Put the beaker or suitable container into the fume cupboard and turn on the fan.
  5. To protect hands from staining put on the gloves and pour ethanol into the beaker to a depth of about 5cm.
  6. Hang the T-shirt on a coat hanger.
  7. Highly Flammable
    Put the bottom of the T-shirt into the beaker, being careful not to let the solvent (ethanol) touch what you have drawn. Ethanol is highly flammable - make sure that there are no naked flames nearby when you do this.
  8. Lower the shirt until the solvent is just below the drawing. Let the top of the shirt hang out over the edge of the beaker. Cover with a plastic bag.
  9. Leave your T-shirt chromatogram to run in the fume cupboard for at least 30 minutes. It is best to leave it for as long as possible.
  10. Remove the shirt from the beaker and hang it up in the fume cupboard to dry.
  11. When the shirt is completely dry you can make your design more permanent by treating it with textile medium. Follow the instructions on the packet.

Make sure that you wash your shirt separately from other clothes before you wear it!
eye protection
eye protection must be worn

highly flammable
HIGHLY FLAMMABLE
ethanol


Contents