Question

How can we separate enantiomers?

Answer 1

Hint Enantiomers are those compounds which have non-superimposable mirror images and can be easily separated as they have similar physical properties but by chemically converting them into easily separable compounds, we can separate them. Now you can easily answer the given statement.

Complete step by step answer:
First of let’s discuss what is an enantiomer. By the term enantiomer, we mean those organic compounds which have a mirror-image relationship but are non-superimposable on each other.
-The enantiomers have similar or identical physical properties such as melting point, boiling point, solubility in a given solvent and density etc.
-The enantiomers cannot be separated by fractional distillation, fractional crystallization and adsorption chromatography.
-But we can separate enantiomers by chemically converting them into those compounds which are easy to separate such as diastereomers.
-Enantiomers can be converted to diastereomers by the reaction of the enantiomer with the single enantiomer of some other compound and thus, the resulting compound, formed is called as the diastereomer.
-Diastereomers are those organic compounds which do not have any mirror image relationship and have different physical properties such as melting point, boiling point, solubility in a given solvent and density etc.
-The diastereomers can be easily separated by fractional distillation, fractional crystallization and adsorption chromatography.
Thus, in this way, we can easily separate enantiomers.

Note: Both the enantiomer and the diastereomers come under the category of the stereoisomers. Stereoisomers are those isomers which differ from each other only in the relative arrangement of the atoms in space but resemble one another with respect to which atoms are linked to other atoms.