In chemistry, a mixture is a material made up of two or more different chemical substances which are not chemically bonded. A mixture is the physical combination of two or more substances in which the identities are retained and are mixed in the form of solutions, suspensions and colloids.
Mixtures are one product of mechanically blending or mixing chemical substances such as elements and compounds, without chemical bonding or other chemical change, so that each ingredient substance retains its own chemical properties and makeup. Despite the fact that there are no chemical changes to its constituents, the physical properties of a mixture, such as its melting point, may differ from those of the components. Some mixtures can be separated into their components by using physical (mechanical or thermal) means. Azeotropes are one kind of mixture that usually poses considerable difficulties regarding the separation processes required to obtain their constituents (physical or chemical processes or, even a blend of them).
Characteristics of mixtures
All mixtures can be characterized as being separable by mechanical means (e.g. purification, distillation, electrolysis, chromatography, heat, filtration, gravitational sorting, centrifugation). Mixtures differ from chemical compounds in the following ways: the substances in a mixture can be separated using physical methods such as filtration, freezing, and distillation. there is little or no energy change when a mixture forms (see Enthalpy of mixing). The substances in a mixture keep its separate properties. In the example of sand and water, neither one of the two substances changed in any way when they are mixed. Although the sand is in the water it still keeps the same properties that it had when it was outside the water. mixtures have variable compositions, while compounds have a fixed, definite formula. when mixed, individual substances keep their properties in a mixture, while if they form a compound their properties can change.
The following table shows the main properties and examples for all possible phase combinations of the three "families" of mixtures:
Homogeneous and heterogeneous mixtures
Mixtures can be either homogeneous or heterogeneous: a mixture of uniform composition and in which all components are in the same phase, such as salt in water, is called homogeneous, whereas a mixture of non-uniform composition and of which the components can be easily identified, such as sand in water, it is called heterogeneous.
In addition, "uniform mixture" is another term for homogeneous mixture and "non-uniform mixture" is another term for heterogeneous mixture. These terms are derived from the idea that a homogeneous mixture has a uniform appearance, or only one visible phase, because the particles are evenly distributed. However, a heterogeneous mixture has non-uniform composition, and its constituent substances are easily distinguishable from one another (often, but not always, in different phases).
Several solid substances, such as salt and sugar, dissolve in water to form a special type of homogeneous mixture called a solution, in which there is both a solute (dissolved substance) and solvent (dissolving medium) present. Air is an example of a solution as well: a homogeneous mixture of gaseous nitrogen solvent, in which oxygen and smaller amounts of other gaseous solutes are dissolved. Mixtures are not limited in either their number of substances or the amounts of those substances, though in a homogeneous mixture the solute-to-solvent proportion can only reach a certain point before the mixture separates and becomes heterogeneous.
A homogeneous mixture is characterized by uniform dispersion of its constituent substances throughout; the substances exist in equal proportion everywhere within the mixture. Differently put, a homogeneous mixture will be the same no matter from where in the mixture it is sampled. For example, if a solid-liquid solution is divided into two halves of equal volume, the halves will contain equal amounts of both the liquid medium and dissolved solid (solvent and solute).
In physical chemistry and materials science, "homogeneous" more narrowly describes substances and mixtures which are in a single phase.