Which one of the following methods can be used to separate anthracene from a mixture of salt and anthracene ?

To separate anthracene from a mixture of salt (sodium chloride) and anthracene, the method of sublimation is used. Sublimation is a physical process where a solid substance converts directly into a gaseous state upon heating, without passing through the liquid phase. Anthracene is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon that possesses this property, similar to substances like naphthalene, camphor, and ammonium chloride. In contrast, common salt (NaCl) is a non-sublimable solid with a very high melting point. When the mixture is heated, anthracene sublimes into vapors which can then be cooled and recovered as a pure solid (sublimate), while the salt remains behind in the heating vessel. While distillation is used for purifying anthracene from other organic impurities like tetracene, sublimation is the standard technique for separating it from inorganic salts [1].

Sources

1. [1] https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/145775519.pdf