Answer to Question #165749 in Chemistry for Phyroe

Question

Give an explanations for the fact that polar solids have a limit to their solubilities in water, whereas polar liquids may be miscible in all proportions?

Answer 1

When a solute dissolves, its polar molecule, atoms, or ions interact with the solvent and are able to diffuse throughout the solution. When a polar solid is added to water, solute particles leave the surface of the solid and become solvated by the solvent. When the maximum amount of solute has dissolved, the solution becomes saturated. If excess solute is present, the rate at which solute particles leave the surface of the solid equals the rate at which they return to the surface of the solid showing the limit of the sollubility in water. In contrast, polar liquids do not have this equilibrium as they evenly diffusse through the solvent.