G10 Chemistry / Jennifer Yu 1

Chapter 15 Water and Aqueous System

15.1 water and its properties

Water in the liquid state
Water, H2O, is a simple molecule consisting of
three atoms.
• The oxygen atom forms a covalent bond
with each of the hydrogen atoms.
• Oxygen has a greater electronegativity
than hydrogen, so the oxygen atom
attracts the electron pair of the covalent
O—H bond to a greater extent than the
hydrogen atom.
• Thus, the O—H bond is highly polar.
• The oxygen atom acquires a partial
negative charge (δ–). • The molecule has a bent shape.
• The less electronegative hydrogen atoms • The two O—H bond polarities do not
acquire partial positive charges (δ+). cancel.
• The water molecule as a whole is polar.

In general, polar molecules are attracted to one another by

dipole interactions.
• The negative end of one molecule attracts the positive
end of another molecule.
• However, in water, this attraction results in hydrogen
bonding.

Hydrogen bonds are attractive forces that arise when a

hydrogen atom is covalently bonded to a very
electronegative atom and also weakly bonded to an
unshared electron pair of another electronegative atom.

F Many unique and important properties of water—

including its high surface tension, low vapor
pressure, and high boiling point—result from
hydrogen bonding.
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Surface Tension
• The water molecules within the body of the liquid
form hydrogen bonds with the other molecules
that surround them on all sides.
• The attractive forces on each of these molecules
are balanced.
• Water molecules at the surface of the liquid
experience an unbalanced attraction.
• As a result, water molecules at the surface tend to
be drawn inward.
The inward force, or pull, that tends to minimize the surface area of a liquid is called surface
tension.
• All liquids have a surface tension, but water’s surface tension is higher than most.
• The surface tension of water tends to hold a drop of liquid in a spherical shape.

It is possible to decrease the surface tension of water by adding a surfactant.

• A surfactant is any substance that interferes with the hydrogen bonding between water
molecules and thereby reduces surface tension.
• Soaps and detergents are surfactants.

Vapor pressure
Hydrogen bonding between water molecules also explains water’s unusually low vapor
pressure.
• An extensive network of hydrogen bonds holds the molecules in liquid water to one
another.
• These hydrogen bonds must be broken before water changes from the liquid to the vapor
state, so the tendency of these molecules to escape is low and evaporation is slow.

Boiling point
Molecular compounds of low molecular mass are usually gases or liquids with low boiling
points at normal atmospheric pressure.
• Ammonia (NH3) has a molar mass of 17.0 g/mol and boils at about –33˚C.
• Water has a molar mass of 18.0 g/mol, but it has a boiling point of 100˚C.

The difference between the boiling points of ammonia and water is due to hydrogen bonding,
which is more extensive in water than in ammonia.
• It takes much more heat to disrupt the attractions between water molecules than those
between ammonia molecules.
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Water in the solid state

As water begins to cool, it behaves initially
like a typical liquid.
• It contracts slightly, and its density
gradually increases.
• When the temperature of the water falls
below 4˚C, the density of water actually
starts to decrease.
Below 4˚C, water no longer behaves like a
typical liquid.
• Ice, which forms at 0˚C, has about a
10% lower density than water at 0˚C.
• Ice is one of only a few solids that
floats in its own liquid.
Why is ice less dense than liquid water?
F The structure of ice is a regular open framework of water molecules in a hexagonal
arrangement.
• When ice melts, the framework collapses.

Extensive hydrogen bonding in ice holds the

water molecules farther apart in a more The hexagonal symmetry of a snowflake reflects
ordered arrangement than in liquid water. the structure of the ice crystal.
The fact that ice floats has important
consequences for all organisms.
• The liquid water at the bottom of
an otherwise frozen body of water
is warmer than 0˚C, so fish and
other aquatic life are better able to
survive.
• If ice were denser than liquid
water, bodies of water would tend
to freeze solid during the winter
months, destroying many types of
organisms.
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15.2 Homogeneous Aqueous Systems

• An aqueous solution is water that contains dissolved substances.

Solvents and Solutes

In a solution, the dissolving medium is the The dissolved particles in a solution are the
solvent. solute.

• A solvent dissolve the solute, and the solute becomes dispersed in the solvent.
• Solvents and solutes may be gases, liquids, or solids.
• Solutions are homogeneous mixtures.
ü Solute particles can be atoms, ions, or molecules.
ü Their average diameters are usually less than 1nm (10-9 m)
ü If you filter a solution through filter paper, both the solute and solvent pass through
the filter.

F Substances that dissolve most readily in water include ionic compounds and polar

• covalentcovalent
Nonpolar compounds.
compounds, such as methane, and compounds found in oil, grease, and
gasoline, do not dissolve in water.
• However, oil and grease will dissolve in gasoline.

The Solution Process

1. A water molecule is polar, with a partial negative
charge on the oxygen atom and partial positive
charges on the hydrogen atoms.
2. As individual solute ions break away from the
crystal, the negatively and positively charged ions
become surrounded by solvent molecules and the
ionic crystal dissolves.
3. The process by which the positive and negative
ions of an ionic solid become surrounded by
solvent molecules is called solvation.
• In some ionic compounds, the attractions among
the ions in the crystals are stronger than the What must happen for an ionic solid to
attractions exerted by water. dissolve?
• These compounds cannot be solvated to any
significant extent and are nearly insoluble.
• For example:
barium sulfate and calcium carbonate
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a. Polar solvents such as water dissolve ionic compounds and polar compounds.
b. Nonpolar solvents such as gasoline dissolve nonpolar compounds.
• This relationship can be summed up in the expression “like dissolves like.”

Electrolytes and Nonelectrolytes

a. An electrolyte is a compound that conducts an electric current when it is in an aqueous

solution or in the molten state.
ü Conduction of an electric current requires ions that are mobile and, thus able to carry
charges through a liquid.

F All ionic compounds are electrolytes because they dissociate into ions.

• Sodium chloride, copper(ii) sulfate, and sodium hydroxide are typical water-soluble
electrolytes
• Barium sulfate is an ionic compound that cannot conduct an electric current in aqueous
solution because it is insoluble, but it can conduct in the molten state.

b. A compound that does not conduct an electric current in either aqueous solution or the
molten state is called a nonelectrolyte.
ü Many molecular compounds are nonelectrolytes because they are not composed of
ions.
ü For example: Most compounds of carbon, such as table sugar (sucrose) and the alcohol
in rubbing alcohol (2-propanol), are nonelectrolytes.

c. Some polar molecular compounds are nonelectrolytes in the pure state but become
electrolytes when they dissolve in water.
ü This occurs because such compounds ionize in solution.
ü For example: ammonia (NH3(g)) & hydrogen chloride (HCl(g))
u An aqueous solution of ammonia conducts electricity because ammonium ions
(NH4+) and hydroxide ions (OH-) form when ammonia dissolves in water.

u In aqueous solution, hydrogen chloride produces hydronium ions (H3O+) and chloride
ions (Cl-). An aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride conducts electricity and is
therefore an electrolyte.
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d. Not all electrolytes conduct electric current to the same degree.

• In a solution that contains a strong electrolyte, all or nearly all of the solute exists as ions.
ü The ions move in the solution and conduct an electric current
ü For example: most soluble salts , inorganic acids, and inorganic bases

• A weak electrolyte conducts an electric current poorly because only a fraction of the solute
in the solution exists as ions.
ü For example: organic acids and bases

Conductivity of solutions
The experiment setup below can be used to determine whether a solution contains an electrolyte.
a. In order for the bulb to light, an electric current must flow between the two electrodes that are
immersed in the solution.
Sodium chloride, a strong Mercury(II) chloride, a weak Glucose, a nonelectrolyte, does
electrolyte, is nearly 100% electrolyte, is only partially not dissociate in water.
dissociated into ions in water. dissociated in water.

Electrolytes are essential to all metabolic prosses.

• Your cells use electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium ions, to carry electrical impulses
across themselves and to other cells.
b. An electrolyte imbalance can occur if you become dehydrated.
For example: When you exercise, you can lose water and electrolytes from your body
through perspiration.
c. It is important to replenish these electrolytes by eating salty foods or by drinking sports
drinks.
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Hydrates

• The water contained in a crystal is called the water of hydration or water of crystallization.
ü A compound that contains water of hydration is called a hydrate.
ü In writing the formula of a hydrate, use a dot to connect the formula of the
compound and the number of water molecules per formula unit.
ü For example: crystals of copper (ii) sulfate pentahydrate always contain five
molecules of water for each copper and sulfate ion pair.

F The forces holding the water molecules in hydrates are not very strong, so the water is
easily lost and regained.

• A substance that is anhydrous does not contain water.

Heating of a sample of blue CuSO4 ．5H2O After a time, much of the blue hydrate has
begins. been converted to white anhydrous CuSO4.

Example 2:
• A piece of filter paper that has been dipped in an aqueous solution of
cobalt (II) chloride and then dried is blue in color (anhydrous CoCl2).
• When the paper is exposed to moist air, it turns pink because of the
formation of the hydrate cobalt(II) chloride hexahydrate (CoCl2．
6H2O).
• The blue paper could be used to test for the presence of water.
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Each hydrate contains a fixed quantity of water and has a definite composition.

• To determine what percent by mass of a hydrate is water

1. determine the mass of water in one mole of hydrate.
2. determine the molar mass of the hydrate.
3. The percent by mass of water can be calculated using the following equation:

Efflorescent Hydrates
The water molecules in hydrates are held by weak forces, so hydrates often have an appreciable vapor
pressure.
ü If a hydrate has a vapor pressure higher than the pressure of water vapor in the air, the hydrate will
lose its water of hydration, or effloresce.
ü For example: copper (ii) sulfate pentahydrate has a vapor pressure of about 1.0kPa at
room temperature. The average pressure of water vapor at room temperature is about 1.3
kPa. When the vapor pressure drops below 1.0kPa, the hydrate effloresces.
Hygroscopic Hydrates
Hydrated ionic compounds that have low vapor pressure remove water from moist air to form higher
hydrates.
ü These hydrates and other compounds that remove moisture from air are called hygroscopic.
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ü For example: Calcium chloride monohydrate spontaneously absorbs a second

molecule of water when exposed to moist air.

ü Calcium chloride is used as a desiccant in the laboratory.

ü A desiccant is a substance used to absorb moisture from the air and create a
dry atmosphere.

Deliquescent compounds

Some compounds are so hygroscopic that they become wet when exposed to normally moist air.
• These compounds are deliquescent, which means that they remove sufficient water from
the air to dissolve completely and form solutions.
• For example: pallets of sodium hydroxide
a. For this reason, containers of
NaOH should always be tightly
stoppered.

b. The solution formed by a

deliquescent substance has a
lower vapor pressure than that of
the water in the air.

Sample problem 1:
Calculate the percent by mass of water in washing soda, sodium carbonate decahydrate
(Na2CO3．10H2O).

Sample problem 2: What is the percent by mass of water in CuSO4·5H2O?

Sample problem 3: Calculate the percent by mass of water in chloride hexahydrate

(CaCl2·6H2O).
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15.3 Heterogeneous Aquesous Systems

Suspensions

• A suspension is a mixture from which particles settle out upon standing.

A suspension differs from a solution because the particles of a suspension are much larger and do not stay
suspended indefinitely.

• The particles in a typical suspension have an average diameter greater than 1000 nm.
• By contrast, the particle size in a solution is usually about 1 nm.
• Suspensions are heterogeneous because at least two substances can be clearly identified.

The difference between a solution and suspension is easily seen when the type of mixture is
filtered.

The small size of the solute particles in a The particles of a suspension can be removed
solution allows them to pass through filter by filtration.
paper.

Colloids

• A colloid is a heterogeneous mixture containing particles that range in size from 1 nm to

1000 nm.
• The particles are spread, or dispersed, throughout the dispersion medium, which can be a
solid, liquid, or gas.

• The important difference between

colloids and solutions and
suspensions is in the size of the
particles.
F Colloids have particles smaller
than those in suspensions and
larger than those in solutions.
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a. The Tyndall Effect

You cannot see a beam of sunlight unless the light passes through particles of water (mist) or
dust in the air.
• These particles scatter the sunlight.
• Similarly, a beam of light is visible as it passes through a colloid.
The scattering of visible light by colloidal particles is called the Tyndall effect.
• Suspensions also exhibit the Tyndall
effect.
• The particles in solutions are too small to
scatter light.

b. Brownian Motion
Flashes of light, or scintillations, are seen when colloids are studied under a microscope.
• Colloids scintillate because the particles reflecting and scattering the light move erratically.
The chaotic movement of colloidal particles, which was first observed by the Scottish botanist
Robert Brown (1773–1858), is called Brownian motion.
• Brownian motion is caused by collisions of the molecules of the dispersion medium with
the small, dispersed colloidal particles.
• These collisions help prevent the colloidal particles from setting.
c. Coagulation
Colloidal particles also tend to stay suspended because they become charged by adsorbing
ions from the dispersing medium onto their surface.
• Adsorption means to adhere to a surface.
All the colloidal particles in a particular colloidal system will have the same charge, although the
colloidal system is neutral.
• The repulsion between the like-charged particles prevents the particles from forming
heavier aggregates that would have a greater tendency to settle out.
A colloidal system can be destroyed or coagulated by the addition of electrolytes.
• The added ions neutralize the charged colloidal particles.
• The particles can clump together to form heavier aggregates and settle out from the
dispersion.
Emulsions
An emulsion is a colloidal dispersion of a liquid in a liquid.
• An emulsifying agent is essential for the formation of an emulsion and for maintaining the
emulsion’s stability.
• Oils and greases are not soluble in water.
• However, oils and greases readily form a colloidal dispersion if soap or detergent is added
to the water.
• One end of a large soap or detergent molecule is polar and is attracted to water molecules.
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• The other end of the soap or detergent molecule is nonpolar and is soluble in oil or grease.
• Soaps and other emulsifying agents thus allow the formation of colloidal dispersions
between liquids that do not ordinarily mix.

This table summarizes the properties of solutions, colloids, and suspensions.