12.1.3

Understanding Solvents, Solutes, & Solutions

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Understanding Solvents, Solutes, and Solutions

Solvents dissolve solutes to form solutions.

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What is a solvent?

  • A solvent is a substance that dissolves a solute.
    • Solvents are usually liquids, such as water, which is a common solvent.
  • Solvents create solutions by mixing with solutes.
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What is a solute?

  • A solute is a substance dissolved in a solvent.
    • Solutes can be solids, liquids, or gases.
    • Salt and sugar are common solutes that dissolve in water.
  • Solutes spread evenly throughout the solvent to form a solution.
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What is a solution?

  • A solution is a mixture of one or more solutes dissolved in a solvent.
    • Solutions are uniform and clear mixtures at the molecular level.
    • Scientists study solutions to understand how substances combine.
  • Solutions can have different concentrations depending on the solute amount.
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Saturated solutions

  • A saturated solution contains the maximum solute dissolved at a set temperature.
    • If more solute is added, it will not dissolve and may form a residue.
    • Temperature affects how much solute can dissolve in a solvent.
  • Saturated solutions help chemists learn about solubility limits.
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Residues and filtrates

  • A residue is the solid left after evaporation, distillation, or filtration.
  • Filters separate residues from filtrates in mixtures.
    • A filtrate is the liquid that passes through a filter during filtering.
  • These techniques help chemists purify substances and study mixtures.

Jump to other topics

1States of Matter

2Atoms, Elements & Compounds

3Stoichometry

4Electrochemistry

5Chemical Energetics

6Chemical Reactions

7Acids, Bases & Salts

8The Periodic Table

9Metals

10Chemistry of the Environment

11Organic Chemistry

11.1Formulae, Functional Groups & Terminology

11.2Naming Organic Compounds

11.3Fuels

11.4Alkanes

11.5Alkenes

11.6Alcohols

11.7Carboxylic Acids

11.8Polymers

12Experimental Techniques & Chemical Analysis

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