How can I extract hexane from a methanol/water extract of a plant?

Question

I know that Hexane and methanol/water do not dissolve and can be separated by pipette but that methode still leaves some hexane in the extract which later screws up my mass spectroscopy results. Does anyone know a chemical way to get rid of the remaining hexane in my solution?

Answer 1

is this some sort of drug you're trying to make?

Answer 2

I'm not sure of how much solvent you're working with, but the best way of separating layers as you have described is with a separatory funnel. What I would do if I were you is remove as much of the methanol as possible either by distillation or on a rotary evaporator. Then do your hexane extraction of your aqueous layer using a sep funnel. If you want to make sure that all of the hexane-soluble material is out of the water layer, do multiple extractions with hexanes (4 or 5). This way, the only organic material in the organic phase will be hexane itself, which can again be removed on a rotary evaporator of simply by placing your sample on a vacuum pump.

Hope this answers your question!!!