Distillation is the process of separating liquids by using

the action of purifying a liquid by a process of heating and cooling.

Explanation:

if you have a mixture of liquids, generally of varying boiling points, Distillation is a very useful technique. One of the simplest setups involves a Round bottom Flask w/ a thermometer in the top, with its bulb at where it is near a tube angled slightly downward out into a condenser.

As the flask is heated, the more volatile (lower B.P.) liquids will rise as fumes, register a temperature, and in the condenser, become liquid again. As this process continues, and you take the fractions at differing temps,

You can efficiently separate the various components If the Boiling Points are not too similar. There is more, but this is a good start.

Explanation: