SOLUTION AND SOLUBILITY SOLUTE, SOLVENT AND SOLUTION

A solute is a dissolved substance which may be a solid, liquid or gas.

A solvent is a substance (usually a liquid, although it may be a solid or gas) which dissolves a solute.
Water is a universal solvent because of its ability to dissolve wide varieties of substances. Water is polar
in nature. It can therefore dissolve all electrovalent compound and all covalent compounds that contain
hydroxyl group, e.g. sugar, alkanols and 1,2,3-triol (glycerols). All gases can dissolve in water to some

extent. Their solubility decreases with increasing temperature.

A solution is a homogenous mixture consisting of at least two components.

Types Of Solution

i) Aqueous solution: this is the solution in which the solvent is water.

ii) Chemical solution: this is the solution in which the dissolution of the solute in the solvent is
accompanied by a chemical reaction. For example, when magnesium appear to dissolve in
aqueous HCl, what happens is that the magnesium attacks the acid to form magnesium
chloride, which dissolves in the water present.

Examples Of Solution

Solution Solute(state) Solvent (state)

Brine Sodium chloride (s) Water(l)
Anti-freeze Alkanol(l) Water(l)
Soda water CO2(g) Water(l)
Brass Zinc(s) Copper(s)
Air mainly Oxygen(g) Nitrogen(g)

True Solution And Colloidal Solution

A true solution is formed when solute particles dissolve such that they are able to get in between the
solvent particles. Example of true solution is aqueous solution of sodium chloride and copper (II)
tetraoxosulphate (VI).

A False or Colloidal solution is one in which the individual particles are larger than the particles of a true
solution, but not large enough to be seen by the naked eye. Examples of colloids are starch and
albumen.

Types Of Colloids

1. Sols and Gels: These are colloids where solid particles are dispersed in liquid medium. Example:
starch, glue, jelly, etc.
2. Aerosols: In aerosols, liquid particles are dispersed in a gas. Fog, smoke, spray of insecticide is
examples of aerosol.
3. Emulsion: For emulsions, a liquid is dispersedin another liquid. Examples of emulsions are milk,
hair cream; cleaning action of detergents is due to their ability to form emulsion.
SATURATED AND UNSATURATED SOLUTION

A saturated solution of a solute at a particular temperature is the one which contains as much solute as
it can dissolve at that temperature in the presence of undissolved solutes particles. A dynamic
equilibrium exists in saturated solution between the undissolve and dissolved solute. E.g.

NaCl(s) dissolution. NaCl(aq)

Precipitation

An unsaturated solution is the one which can still dissolve more solutes at the particular temperature.

Supersaturated solution: A supersaturated solution is the one which contains more of the solutes than it
can normally hold at that temperature.

The saturated solution of certain substances can be cooled without the excess solutes crystallizing out.
Such substances include; sodium trioxothiosulpahte(VI)-pentahydrate, Na 2S2O3.5H2O and sodium
tetraoxosulpahte (VI)-decahydrate, Na2SO4.10H2O.

Supersaturated solutions are highly unstable. The excess solute will immediately crystallize out if the
solution is shaken slightly or when dust, a gas bubble or a crystal of solute is introduced into the
solution.

SOLUBILITY

The solubility of a solute in a solvent at a particular temperature is the maximum amount of solutes in
moles or grams that will dissolve in 1 dm 3 of the solvent at that particular temperature. It is expressed in
Mol/ dm3

The concentration in moldm-3 of a saturated solution is termed the solubility of the substance i.e.
Solubility (mol /dm3) = Concentration in g/dm3 / Molar mass

Solubility in mol/ dm3 can also be expressed as = Mass x 1000 /Molar Mass × Volume

Solubility in g/ dm3 = Mass x 1000 /Volume

DETERMINATION OF SOLUBILITY

Solute: KCl, Solvent: water

Method

1. A saturated solution of KCl is prepared by dissolving excess of the solid in water in a beaker.
2. Allow the solution in the beaker to settle down to obtain a clear saturated solution.
3. Decant a portion of clear solution into another beaker and measures its temperature.
4. Transfer the solution into a weighed evaporation dish and record the mass of the solution.
5. Evaporate the solution to a complete dryness in a water bath.
6. Allow the resulting solid to cool and reweigh the basin with content.
7. Obtain mass of the dissolved salt and calculate the mass of the salt that would dissolve in 1dm 3
of water at that temperature.

CALCULATION
Mass of basin = xg

Mass of basin + solution = yg

Mass of basin + salt = zg

Mass of solution = (y-x)g

Mass of salt = (z-x)g

Mass of water used = (y-z)g

(Y – z)g H2O dissolves (z – x)g salt

:. 100g H2O dissolves (z – x)/(y – z) x 100g salt

[Density of water = 1gcm3]

:. No of moles of salt = 100(z – x) /(y-z) x M.M

:. Moles of salt dissolves in 1 dm3 water = 100(z-x) / (y-z) x M.M

FACTORS THAT AFFECT SOLUBILITY

1. Nature of solvent and solute

2. Temperature

3. Pressure (often neglected)

Solubility Curves And Their Uses

The graphical representation of the variation in the solubility of solutes in a solvent is known as solubility
curve. The curve also shows the effect of temperature on the solubility of each solute in the solvent.
Fig: solubility curve

We Can Use Solubility Curves To:

• Determine how much solid will dissolve at a given temperature.

• Obtain a general idea about the ability of a solute to dissolve in a solvent, at different temperatures.

• Compare the different solubilities of different solutes.

• Determine the mass of crystals deposited, when a saturated solution is cooled from a higher to a lower
temperature.

Note: when a solution is cooled, the solute tends to become less soluble and no longer remain dissolved.

The solute comes out of the solution as crystals and this process is known as crystallization.

Solubility Of Gases

Unlike most solids, gases (except hydrogen chloride) become less soluble as the temperature increases.
The solubility of gases is however directly proportional to the pressure of the gas i.e. the higher the gas
pressure, the more soluble the gas will be.

Application Of Solubility Curves

• Pharmacists use it to determine the dosage volume of drugs before prescription.

• It helps in separating a mixture of solids by using fractional crystallization method.

• Scientists use it to determine the most suitable temperature at which a chemical can be extracted
from its source using a given solvent.

Relationship Between Solubility And Crystallization

The mass of crystals formed during crystallization can be easily obtained from the solubility curve. In the
industries, crystallization is a means of purifying raw materials and obtaining pure products e.g.
production of sugar. Any impurity present remains in the solution as the solute crystallizes out in a
gradual cooling process.

Solubility of salts and its application in qualitative analysis, salts usually dissociate into their constituent
ions (cations and anions) when they dissolve in water. For insoluble salts, the portion that dissolves in
water undergoes complete dissociation while the undissolved portion remains as a solid. A dynamic
equilibrium takes place between the undissolved solids and the saturated solution. E.g

AgCl(s) Ag+(aq) + Cl-(aq)

The formation of insoluble salts which are seen as precipitate is used to test for some anions.

Calculations On Solubility

1. In an experiment to determine the solubility of KNO 3 in water, the following results were
obtained;

Mass of evaporating dish = 20g

Mass of evaporating dish and saturated solution = 37g

Mass of evaporating dish and salt residue = 27g

Temperature = 40°C

Calculate the solubility of KNO3 at this temperature.

Solution

Mass of dissolve KNO3 = 27 – 20 = 7g

Mass of water = 37 – 27 = 10g (i.e. 10cm 3)

Since 7g of KNO3 saturates 10cm3 of water,

700g of KNO3 will saturate 1000 cm3 of water. :-

Solubility of KNO3 = mass conc/molar mass

Molar mass of KNO3 = 101g/mol

= 700/101

= 6.93mol/dm 3

Solubility of KNO3 at 40°C = 6.93mol/dm3

Alternative method

700g of KNO3 saturates 1 dm3 of water

No of moles = mass / molar mass

= 700/101

= 6.93mol

6.93 moles of KNO3 saturates 1dm3 of water at 40°C.