Salt can be removed from oil by taking advantage of the fact that salt is soluble in water whereas oil is not. The recommended approach is to add water to the oil and salt mixture, which dissolves the salt into the water. Since oil and water separate into two distinct layers, the saltwater layer can then be separated from the oil. After separating out the water layer, the oil remains largely free of salt. This method effectively removes the salt without affecting the oil quality.
Steps to remove salt from oil:
- Add water to the mixture containing oil and salt.
- Stir or mix to dissolve the salt into the water.
- Allow the mixture to settle so that oil and water separate into two layers.
- Carefully separate and remove the water layer containing dissolved salt.
- The remaining oil layer should now have significantly less salt.
This water-based separation works because salt is polar and dissolves in polar solvents like water, whereas oil is nonpolar and remains separate. This principle underlies industrial crude oil desalting processes as well.