Is it possible to separate oil from water, and how to do it?

There are all sorts of situations that happen in life: for example, vegetable oil is mixed with water, or liquid gets into the engine. Separating oil from water with your own hands is easy and simple: remember the school chemistry course, stock up on filters, tubes and absorbent agents.

The essence of the mixture

These two liquids do not mix with each other. From a school chemistry course, many will remember that the combination of water and fats is called an emulsion. Additives are always required for the diffusion of substances - they are called emulsifiers.

When mixed with water, the oil layer appears on top, since it is a lighter substance. Due to its greater density, water sinks. Separating the two products is not difficult.

How to split

Sunflower oil is collected in the upper part of the container. If you act carefully, most of the product can be drained or scooped out without special tools. Pass the remaining emulsion through a filter. The output will be clean water without an oily film.

The freezer method plays on the difference in freezing temperatures of products:

Place the container with the mixture in the freezer.
Water begins to transform into ice at zero. The temperature for vegetable oil to solidify is lower than that of water.
After some time, pieces of ice will float in the liquid oil. They are very easy to remove.

Drain the water using a rubber straw:

Secure the tube to a bowl with water and oil, lower the end to the very bottom.
Prepare a container for water, intermediate mixture and oil; it should be half the size.
Suck the air out of the tube and lower its other end into a clean container.
The distillation of water will begin immediately.
When the intermediate substance comes out and the oil flows out, transfer the tube to the appropriate container.

If you need to remove oil from water, use an absorbent substance. At home - an activated carbon tablet. Calculate the amount of agent using the formula: 3 parts to 1 part oil. How to proceed:

Immerse the absorbent agent into the mixture.
Close the container and shake vigorously.
Pour the mixture into a new bowl a couple of times, as an oily layer remains on the walls.

Advice from purity-en.htgetrid.com magazine
If the vegetable oil looks liquid and watery, and during the cooking process it does not fry, but stews, most likely it was diluted not with water, but with another low-quality vegetable product. Water in the product is immediately visible.

What to do with motor oil

Disposing of used oil isn't always a smart idea, since it can be converted into cheap fuel for an oil furnace, a preservative for wood surfaces, or a lubricant for various equipment.

How to clean engine oil, all options:

Let the mixture sit and then pour off the top layer.
Stir thoroughly or use a centrifuge, then drain or suck out the top oily layer.
Pass the emulsion through a filter: gauze, newspaper, etc.
You can also use a demulsifier.

Everything in the household will come in handy, so don’t rush to get rid of oil spoiled by water.