Melting Point: Key to Substance Purity & Identification - Paper Sample

Any substance has a unique melting point that can be used to define it. The melting point is the temperature at which a substance changes from solid to liquid form. Notably, the determinant of a compound's melting point is the amount of energy responsible for breaking its structural bonds. For instance, high melting points result in a more significant amount of energy to break such bonds. Besides, the melting point can determine the purity of a compound during extractions, hence ensuring its products' market standards. Therefore, this paper seeks to discuss the importance of identifying the melting points of various natural compounds.

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The melting point of a compound helps the extractors and traders determine the purity levels of such substances. Notably, pure substances tend to melt at a standard and highly defined temperature (Sima, 2015). For instance, every pure substance should melt at an expected temperature, a failure to which it is considered impure (Thomas, 2018). Therefore, it is essential to note the melting point of any natural compound during extractions to meet the standards' requirements.

Consequently, the melting point of a natural compound would ensure its standards meet the local and international market requirements. Most traders determine the quality of substances according to their melting points (Thomas, 2018). For instance, caffeine extraction from tea leaves should meet the expected melting point. Alongside this, if caffeine reaches a melting point of 236 degrees rather than the expected 238 degrees, it is considered impure (Alshaikh, 2019). Subsequently, the lower melting point may result from impurities in the solvent used during extraction. As a fact, impurities decrease the melting points of any substance; thus, less energy is required to break the compounds' structural bonds (Sima, 2015).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the paper sought to discuss the importance of identifying the melting point of natural compounds during extractions. For instance, the melting point determines the purity of substances, ensuring local and international market standards. Besides, impurities decrease the melting of any substance. Therefore, this article recommends extractors and traders of natural compounds consider the melting points of the substances.

References

Alshaikh, R., Essa, E., & El Maghraby, G. (2019). Eutexia for enhanced dissolution rate and anti-inflammatory activity of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents: Caffeine as a melting point modulator. International Journal Of Pharmaceutics, 563, 395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpharm.2019.04.024

Šima, J. (2015). Structure-related melting and boiling points of inorganic compounds. Foundations Of Chemistry, 18(1), 79. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10698-015-9228-x

Thomas, J., Harris, K., & Edwards, P. (2018). Turning points in solid-state, materials, and surface science (p. 67). RSC Pub.