Factors Affecting Solubility
Factors Affecting Solubility
Factors Affecting Solubility
Temperature
Basically, solubility increases with temperature. It is the case for most of the solvents.
The situation is though different for gases. With increase of the temperature they
became less soluble in each other and in water, but more soluble in organic solvents.
Polarity
In most cases solutes dissolve in solvents that have a similar polarity. Chemists use a
popular aphorism to describe this feature of solutes and solvents: "Like dissolves
like". Non-polar solutes do not dissolve in polar solvents and the other way round.
Pressure
Solid and liquid solutes
For majority of solid and liquid solutes, pressure does not affect solubility.
Gas solutes
As for gasses the Henry's law states that solubility of gas is directly proportional to the
pressure of this gas. This is mathematically presented as: p = kc, where k is a
temperature dependent constant for a gas. A good proof of Henry's law can be observed
when opening a bottle of carbonated drink. When we decrease the pressure in a bottle,
the gas that was dissolved in the drink bubbles out of it.
Molecular size
The larger the molecules of the solute are, the larger is their molecular weight and their
size. It is more difficult it is for solvent molecules to surround bigger molecules. If all of
the above mentioned factors ale excluded, a general rule can be found that larger
particles are generally less soluble. If the pressure, and temperature are the same
than out of two solutes of the same polarity, the one with smaller particles is
usually more soluble.
Agitation
The more a solution is agitated (meaning stirred), the faster the rate of solution
When a solution is agitated the water particles hit the surface of the solute(sugar) faster
and the sugar crystals are
dissolved (separated by water) faster
Particle Size
The smaller the size of the particles, the faster they will dissolve.
Smaller particles have more surface area than larger ones
This means that the particles have more space to contact the water and dissolve
Demonstration
Surface Area
Temperature
The higher the temperature, the faster the rate of dissolving is for a solid in a liquid.
Higher temperatures cause water molecules to move faster.
This means that water molecules collide with the surface of the solute (sugar) and
separate the sugar crystals from one another.
In chemistry, Henry's law is one of the gas laws formulated by the English
chemist William Henry, who studied the topic in the early 19th century. In his publication
about the quantity of gases absorbed by water, he described the results of his
experiments:
"Water takes up, of gas condensed by one, two, or more additional atmospheres, a
quantity which, ordinarily compressed, would be equal to twice, thrice, &c. the volume
absorbed under the common pressure of the atmosphere."
In other words, the amount of dissolved gas is proportional to its partial pressure in the
gas phase. The proportionality factor is called the Henry's law constant.
An example where Henry's law is at play is in the depth-dependent dissolution of
oxygen and nitrogen in the blood of underwater divers that changes
during decompression, leading to decompression sickness. An everyday example is
given by ones experience with carbonated soft drinks, which contain dissolved carbon
dioxide. Before opening, the gas above the drink in its container is almost pure carbon
dioxide, at a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure. After the bottle is opened, this
gas escapes, moving the partial pressure of carbon dioxide above the liquid to be much
lower, resulting in degassing as the dissolved carbon dioxide comes out of solution.
Effervescence is the escape of gas from an aqueous solution and the foaming or
fizzing that results from a release of the gas. The word effervescence is derived from
the Latin verb fervere (to boil), preceded by the adverb ex. It has the same linguistic root
as the word fermentation.
Effervescence can also be observed when opening a bottle of champagne, beer
or carbonated beverages such as soft drinks. The visible bubbles are produced by the
escape from solution of the dissolved gas (which itself is not visible while dissolved in
the liquid).
Although CO2 is most common for beverages, nitrogen gas is sometimes deliberately
added to certain draught beers. The smaller bubble size creates a smoother beer head.
Due to the poor solubility of nitrogen in beer, kegs or widgets are used for this.
In the laboratory, a common example of effervescence is seen if hydrochloric acid is
added to a block of limestone. If a few pieces of marbleor an antacid tablet are put in
hydrochloric acid in a test tube fitted with a bung, effervescence of carbon dioxide can
be witnessed.
CaCO3 + 2 HCl CaCl2 + H2O + CO2
This process is generally represented by the following reaction, where a pressurized
dilute solution of carbonic acid in water releases gaseous carbon dioxide
at decompression:
H2CO3 H2O + CO2
In simple terms, it is the result of the chemical reaction occurring in the liquid which
produces a gaseous product.
Pascal
One pascal equals a pressure of one newton per square metre.
One newton is approximately equal to the force exerted by a mass of one tenth of a kg.
The weight of a column of air one centimetre square at sea level is approximately 1kg,
i.e. 10 newtons.
There are 10,000 square centimetres in a square metre. So the pressure in pascals equals
roughly 10 x 10,000 = 100,000 Pa = approximately 100 kPa (kilopascals)
At sea level, the approximate value of atmospheric pressure in those units of measure
is as follows:
sea level and is equal to 14.7 psi or 1.01325 bar, which is close enough for bar and atm
to be used interchangeably in many applications.