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    • Chapter 02 Stuff, matter: What is it? >
      • 0200 Stuff, matter: A theory of atoms
      • 0201 Atoms: The building blocks of all stuff
      • 0202 People classifying stuffs. Why?
    • Chapter 05 Chemical reactions and chemical equations >
      • 0500 Chemical reactions and chemical equations. Overview
      • 0501 Chemical amount and its unit of measurement, mole
      • 0502 The Avogadro constant: How many is that?
      • 0503 The Avogadro constant: Why is it that number?
      • 0504 Chemical formulas: What can they tell us??
      • 0505 Chemical equations: What can they tell us?
      • 0506 Limiting reactants: How much reaction can happen?
      • 0507 Balanced chemical equations: What are they?
      • 0508 Chemical reactions as competitions
    • Chapter 09 Aqueous solutions >
      • 0901 What is a solution? And what is not?
      • 0902 Miscibility of liquids in each other
      • 0903 Like dissolves like? Shades of grey
      • 0905 Dissolution of ionic salts in water: A competition
      • 0906 Can we predict solubilities of salts?
      • 0907 Solution concentration
      • 0908 Chemical species, speciation in aqueous solution
      • 0909 Solutes: Electrolytes or non-electrolytes?
      • 0910 Electrolytes - strong or weak?
      • 0911 Concentrated, dilute, strong, weak
      • 0912 Species concentration vs. solution concentration
      • 0913 Weak electrolytes: Getting quantitative
    • Chapter 11: Dynamic chemical equilibrium >
      • 1100 Dynamic chemical equilibrium: Overview
      • 1101 Visualising dynamic chemical equilibrium
      • 1102 The jargon of chemical equilibrium
      • 1103 Equilibrium constants: The law of equilibrium
      • 1104 The law of equilibrium: an analogy
    • Chapter 22 Evidence from spectroscopy >
      • 2200 Spectroscopy: Overview and preview
      • 2201 Quantisation of forms of energy
      • 2202 Light: Wave-particle "duality"
      • 2203 Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy
      • 2204 Beer’s law: How much light is transmitted?
    • Chapter 27 The greenhouse effect, climate change >
      • 2700 The greenhouse effect: overview
      • 2701 Is Earth in energy balance?
      • 2702 CO2 in the atmosphere before 1800
      • 2703 So little CO2! Pffft?
      • 2704 Does CO2 affect Earth's energy balance?
      • 2705 The "greenhouse effect"
      • 2706 Why does CO2 absorb radiation from Earth?
      • 2707 The "enhanced greenhouse effect"
      • 2708 Why doesn't CO2 absorb the radiation from the sun?
      • 2709 Why are N2 and O2 not greenhouse gases?
      • 2710 Doesn't water vapour absorb all the IR?
      • 2711 Carbon dioxide from our cars
      • 2712 The source of energy from combustion
      • 2713 Comparing fuels as energy sources
      • 2714 Methane: How does it compare as a GHG?
      • 2715 Different sorts of pollution of the atmosphere
      • 2716 "Acidification" of seawater
    • Chapter 27 Communicating chemistry >
      • 2700 Overview, preview
      • 2703 The jargon we use
  • TEACHERS' CORNER
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0901 What is a solution? And what is not?

14/1/2019

1 Comment

 
​Module 0901
​

What is a solution? And what is not?




Which mixtures are classified as solutions?

And which are not?

Are all solutions liquids?

​Are the answers unambiguous?
​

Preamble: The key questions


​Is every mixture of substances a solution? Is the answer always clearly yes or no? What are the criteria for deciding? Who decides? Are all solutions liquids? There is more to these questions than you might think ....

And since all of the modules in this Chapter 09 are about solutions, it would be handy to have a good mental image (at the molecular level) of what a solution is.
Perhaps this video discussion might help your understanding grow, along with Aussie's ......
Aha! Aussie clarifies his understanding.
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KEY IDEAS - What is a solution? And what is not?
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So many questions seeking solutions ....

Solutions: A definition


A simple definition of “solution” is a mixture of substances which is homogeneous: This means that ....
  • we cannot distinguish the individual component substances by eye
  • the composition is the same in all parts of the mixture, and so
  • the properties of the mixtures (such as density, colour hue, colour intensity, and refractive index) are the same everywhere.


Examples: Are all solutions liquids?


​Solutions may be gaseous, liquid or solid. Examples of solutions are:
  • Salty water (water and sodium chloride)
  • Air (nitrogen, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, and lesser components)
  • Brass (copper and zinc metals)
  • Wines (water, alcohol, and substances that contribute to the aroma, flavour and colour)

​Liquid solutions in water, for example, can result from dissolving liquids, solids, or gases:
  • liquids (eg, ethanol);
  • solids (eg, sugar); or
  • gases (eg, carbon dioxide).

Are all mixtures solutions?


​​Many mixtures are not solutions because they are not homogeneous: that is, they are heterogeneous: Examples include:
  • water and sand.
  • air with dust particles.
  • liquid (not yet set) concrete (sand, gravel and cement – each component identifiable).
These are called suspensions. Particles of one substance are suspended within the other, but over time will settle out due to gravity.

Is classification cut-and-dried?


​Anyone who is learning chemistry know that it is often the case that artificial classifications have ambiguity ......
​
Firstly, if we have a glass vessel containing only air, we can presume that the composition of the mixture is the same from location to location in the sample: that is, it is homogeneous. So we would have no trouble declaring this to be a solution.

However, the composition of earth’s atmosphere at an altitude of 10 km is different from that at the earth’s surface. So the whole of the atmosphere does not technically satisfy the criteria of a solution.

The same reasoning applies when we consider a confined sample of seawater, and (say) the Pacific Ocean.

And there is another, more important issue …..

​


Suspensions


In some mixtures, the particles of one component are borderline in size between those of a solution and a suspension. They are bigger than simple molecules, and their size is in the range about 10–1000 nanometres (1 nm = 1 E-9 m, or 0.000 000 001 metre).
 
These cannot be seen by eye, but those above about 200 nm are visible in an optical microscope, and the smaller ones can be “seen” by electron microscope. A diameter of a helium atom is about 0.1 nm.

These particles remain homogeneously dispersed throughout the other substance, and do not settle under gravity.
​
They are called colloidal dispersions, and have a whole set of characteristic properties, the most obvious often being the ability to scatter a beam of light.

Milk is a colloidal dispersion: Tiny butterfat globules are dispersed throughout an aqueous medium.
​
Other examples include
  • in liquid medium: mayonnaise, creams, blood
  • in solid medium: jellies, agar
  • in gaseous medium: mist, aerosol sprays, fog, clouds, and smoke.
 

​

Is a mixture only a solution, a suspension, or colloidal?


Blood is all three of (i) a solution, (ii) a suspension, and (iii) a colloidal suspension:

(i) It is a solution because very small molecules (< 2 nm) of, for example, glucose and amino acids are indistinguishable in the plasma.

(ii) Blood cells are at least 6000 nm, so they are in blood as a suspension.

(iii) The plasma also contains proteins whose size is in the range 5-500 nm, and these remain distributed through the plasma as a colloidal dispersion.

​Aha!
 
​

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SELF CHECK​
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Did you find solutions to your questions? Test yourself .......

​
1.        Are the following statements correct or incorrect?
(a)       A mixture of copper, sulfure and oxygen is a heterogeneous mixture.
(b)       A sample of copper sulfate is a heterogeneos mixture.
(c)       A sample of copper sulfate is a homogeneous mixture.
(d)       A mixture of a little copper sulfate in lots of water forms a homogeneous mixture when shaken.
(e)       Typical of all solutions, the colour hue and colour intensity of a red wine is the same at all locations.
(f)        Dusty air is a suspension because it is possible to see the dust particles, and they settle out over time.
g)        Dusty air is a homogeneous mixture because it looks the same everywhere.

2. The text below has some missing terms. Insert the following terms into the appropriate places in the text.
  • dense
  • suspension
  • heterogeneous
  • colloidal dispersions
  • refractive index
  • solution
  • mud
  • homogeneous
  • vinegar
 
​If you cannot recognise all of the individual components of a mixture, and the composition of the mixture is the same at all locations, that mixture is said to be …………………... At all places in a homogeneous mixture, properties such as ……………………. have the same value. Homogeneous mixtures are classified (by people) as ………………... An example of a solution is …………………….. Mixtures in which individual components can be recognised are said to be ……………………... Heterogeneous mixtures are called …………………….. An example of a heterogeneous mixture is …………………….. Over time, the more ……………………. components of a suspension will settle out. Mixtures in which the size of the particles of at least one component are intermediate between those of a solution and a suspension are called ……………………..
 

3. Disregarding the social comment, evaluate the technical correctness of the label in the pic below.
Picture


ANSWERS
1.         (a) Correrct
            (b) Incorrect
            (c) Incorrect
            (d) Correct
            (e) Correct
            (f) Correct
            (g) Incorrect
 
​2.         If you cannot recognise all of the individual components of a mixture, and the composition of the mixture is the same at all locations, that mixture is said to be homogeneous. At all places in a homogeneous mixture, properties such as refractive index have the same value. Homogeneous mixtures are classified (by people) as solutions. An example of a solution is vinegar. Mixtures in which individual components can be recognised are said to be heterogeneous. Heterogeneous mixtures are called suspensions. An example of a heterogeneous mixture is mud. Over time, the more dense components of a suspension will settle out. Mixtures in which the size of the particles of at least one component are intermediate between those of a solution and a suspension are called colloidal dispersions.

3. Alcohol (ethanol) is a pure substance, so technically the statement is a nonsense. [There are, of course many alcohol-containing solutions which give some people pleasure or comfort, or problems.]

​
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LEARNING CHEMISTRY FOR UNDERSTANDING

© The content on any page in this website (video, text, and self-check) may be used without charge for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that acknowledgement is given to the Aha! Learning chemistry with Prof Bob website, with specification of the URL: ahachemistry.com.


1 Comment
Nevada Window Film link
7/3/2023 15:38:54

Hi great rreading your blog

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  • HOME
  • NAVIGATION
    • Table of contents
    • Index
    • TALK WITH PROF BOB?
  • LEARNING MODULES
    • Chapter 02 Stuff, matter: What is it? >
      • 0200 Stuff, matter: A theory of atoms
      • 0201 Atoms: The building blocks of all stuff
      • 0202 People classifying stuffs. Why?
    • Chapter 05 Chemical reactions and chemical equations >
      • 0500 Chemical reactions and chemical equations. Overview
      • 0501 Chemical amount and its unit of measurement, mole
      • 0502 The Avogadro constant: How many is that?
      • 0503 The Avogadro constant: Why is it that number?
      • 0504 Chemical formulas: What can they tell us??
      • 0505 Chemical equations: What can they tell us?
      • 0506 Limiting reactants: How much reaction can happen?
      • 0507 Balanced chemical equations: What are they?
      • 0508 Chemical reactions as competitions
    • Chapter 09 Aqueous solutions >
      • 0901 What is a solution? And what is not?
      • 0902 Miscibility of liquids in each other
      • 0903 Like dissolves like? Shades of grey
      • 0905 Dissolution of ionic salts in water: A competition
      • 0906 Can we predict solubilities of salts?
      • 0907 Solution concentration
      • 0908 Chemical species, speciation in aqueous solution
      • 0909 Solutes: Electrolytes or non-electrolytes?
      • 0910 Electrolytes - strong or weak?
      • 0911 Concentrated, dilute, strong, weak
      • 0912 Species concentration vs. solution concentration
      • 0913 Weak electrolytes: Getting quantitative
    • Chapter 11: Dynamic chemical equilibrium >
      • 1100 Dynamic chemical equilibrium: Overview
      • 1101 Visualising dynamic chemical equilibrium
      • 1102 The jargon of chemical equilibrium
      • 1103 Equilibrium constants: The law of equilibrium
      • 1104 The law of equilibrium: an analogy
    • Chapter 22 Evidence from spectroscopy >
      • 2200 Spectroscopy: Overview and preview
      • 2201 Quantisation of forms of energy
      • 2202 Light: Wave-particle "duality"
      • 2203 Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy
      • 2204 Beer’s law: How much light is transmitted?
    • Chapter 27 The greenhouse effect, climate change >
      • 2700 The greenhouse effect: overview
      • 2701 Is Earth in energy balance?
      • 2702 CO2 in the atmosphere before 1800
      • 2703 So little CO2! Pffft?
      • 2704 Does CO2 affect Earth's energy balance?
      • 2705 The "greenhouse effect"
      • 2706 Why does CO2 absorb radiation from Earth?
      • 2707 The "enhanced greenhouse effect"
      • 2708 Why doesn't CO2 absorb the radiation from the sun?
      • 2709 Why are N2 and O2 not greenhouse gases?
      • 2710 Doesn't water vapour absorb all the IR?
      • 2711 Carbon dioxide from our cars
      • 2712 The source of energy from combustion
      • 2713 Comparing fuels as energy sources
      • 2714 Methane: How does it compare as a GHG?
      • 2715 Different sorts of pollution of the atmosphere
      • 2716 "Acidification" of seawater
    • Chapter 27 Communicating chemistry >
      • 2700 Overview, preview
      • 2703 The jargon we use
  • TEACHERS' CORNER
    • T01 Communicating chemistry
    • T02 Beer's law
    • T03 Professional amnesia of the chemistry teaching professio
    • T04 Law of equilibrium
    • T05 Visusalizing dynamic chemical equilibrium
    • Information vs. knowledge
  • PERSONAL GALLERY
    • Family
    • Travel
    • Playful dolphins
    • The University of Western Australia
    • Kings Park
    • Perth
    • At work
    • 999 Thermodynamics