Answer:
Beginning in the late 1840s, thousands of prospectors rushed to California in search of gold. One of the approaches taken to isolate the gold from the soil was called "panning". To pan, dirt is placed in a pan and covered with water. After mixing thoroughly, the pan is gently swirled to remove dissolved material, while the heavier gold settles to the bottom of the pan. The gold is then separated from the mixture of soil and water.
Not everyone is out to search for gold (and not many searches will get much gold, either). In a chemical reaction, it is important to isolate the component(s) of interest from other materials, so that they can be further characterized. Studies of biochemical systems, environmental analysis, and pharmaceutical research, among others, may require reliable separation methods. Following are a number of common separation technique
