Separation of Photosynthetic Pigments by Paper Chromatography IntroductionChlorophyll is in fact only one pigment in a group of closely related pigments commonly found in photosynthetic plants called photosynthetic pigments. This can be demonstrated by extracting pigments from leaves with acetone and separating them by paper chromatography. With a bit of luck, five pigments can be identified: chlorophyll a (blue-green), chlorophyll b (yellow-green), xanthophylls (yellow), carotene (orange) and pheophytin (grey, it is a product of the degradation of chlorophyll) . Paper towels a concentrated dot of leaf extract is used in this experiment. When immersed in a suitable solvent, the pigments travel up the blotting paper at different rates because they have different solubilities in the solvent. This way they separate from each other and can be identified by their different colors and positions. Requirements:l Large test tube (24*150mm);l Cap to fit the test tube;l Pin;l A small glass tube to transfer the pigment solution;l Chromatography paper or filter paper;l Test tube rack;l Pigment solution;l Solvent (5 cm3).Procedure:l A strip of absorbent paper was prepared. It is such a length that it almost reaches the bottom of a large test tube and such a width that the edges do not touch the sides of the test tube; l Draw a pencil line across the paper strip 30mm from one end. The paper was folded at the other end 90 degrees and secured to the retainer using a pin. Be careful not to let the bottom end of the paper touch the bottom of the tube or let the edges touch the sides; l Remove the paper from the boiling tube and using the small glass tube provided, place a drop of the pigment solution in the center of the pencil line. Dry the area with the heat of a hair dryer or let it dry naturally. Place a second small drop on top of the first.