Chapter 3

Solutions and their concentrations

 Solutions
Solutions are homogeneous mixtures of two or more pure
substances.

In a solution, the solute is dispersed uniformly throughout the

solvent.

Solvent: The substance present in largest quantity usually is called

the solvent.
The solvent can be either a liquid or a solid.

Solute: The substance that is present in smallest quantity is said to

be dissolved and is called the solute.

The solute can be either a gas, a liquid, or a solid.

 Types of Solutions
•Depending on the original states(solid, liquid or gas) of the solution
components: Solutions can exist as:
Gaseous solutions – air
Liquid solutions – drinks
Solid solutions – steel or other alloys
A saturated solution contains the maximum amount of a solute
that will dissolve in a given solvent at a specific temperature.
An unsaturated solution contains less solute than the solvent has
the capacity to dissolve at a specific temperature.
A supersaturated solution contains more solute than is present in
a saturated solution at a specific temperature.
Example: consider potassium chloride, an ionic compound
which dissolves in water as K+ and Cl- ions as follows.
KCl(s) K+(aq) + Cl-(aq)

When the two processes (forward and reverse) are at equilibrium,

the solution is said to be saturated.
 Preparations of solution
Weigh the required amount of solute to prepare any given solution,
you do the following:

 This is a volumetric flask

Dilution is the procedure for preparing a less concentrated solution
from a more concentrated solution.
Process of adding solvent, usually water, to lower the concentration of
a solution

Dilution

Add Solvent

Moles of solute Moles of solute

before dilution (i) = after dilution (f)

MiVi = MfVf
 Problem

If 32 mL stock solution of 6.5 M H2SO4 is diluted to a volume of

500 mL. What would be the resulting concentration?

M1 x V1 = M2 x V2

(6.5M) x (32 mL) = M2 x (500.0 mL)

6.5 M x 32 mL
M2 = 500 mL

M2 = 0.42 M
 Concentration Units

The concentration of a solution is the amount of solute present in a

given quantity of solvent or solution.

• Percent volume
% volume = volume solute (ml) x 100
volume solution (ml)

• Percent mass
% mass = mass solute (g) x 100
mass solution (g)

Solution = solvent + solute

Parts per Million (ppm)

mass of A in solution
ppm =  106
total mass of solution

Parts per Billion (ppb)

mass of A in solution
ppb =  109
total mass of solution
Example 1:
What is the percent by volume concentration of a solution in which 75.0 ml of ethanol is
diluted to a volume of 250.0 ml?

75.0 ml x 100 = 30.0%

250.0 ml
Example 2:
What volume of acetic acid is present in a bottle containing 350.0 ml of a solution which
measures 5.00% concentration?

x = 0.05
350.0 ml
x = 17.5 ml
Example 3:
Find the percent by mass in which 41.0 g of NaCl is dissolved in 331 grams of water.

41 g x 100 = 11.0%
372 g
 Molarity
Number of moles of solute present in one litre of solution. It is
represented by M.
Moles of solute
M
Volume (in litre)
Moles of solute  1000
M
Molecular mass  volume (in ml)

Example: Calculate the molarity of a solution of NaOH in which 0.40g NaOH

dissolved in 500 ml solution.

Solution:
0.40
M  1000
40  500

= 0.02 M
 Molality
Number of moles of solute present in 1 Kg (or 1000 gram) of
solvent. It is represented by m (small letter).
Moles of solute
m
Mass of solvent

Mass of solute  1000

m
Molecular mass  Mass of solvent (gram)

Example: Calculate the molality of a solution containing 0.5 g of

NaOH dissolved in 500 gm.

Solution:
 Illustrative Problem
Calculate the molality of 1 molar solution of NaOH given
density of solution is 1.04 gram/ml.

Solution:
1 molar solution means 1 mole of solute present per litre of solution.

Therefore, mass of 1 litre solution = 1000 x 1.04

= 1040 gram
Mass of solute = 1 x 40 = 40g
Therefore, mass of solvent 1040 – 40 = 1000g
1
m   1000  1 molal solution.
1000
 Normality
Number of equivalents of solute present in one litre of solution.

Equivalent of solute
N
Volume of solution in litre
Mass of solute  1000
N
Equivalent mass of solute  volume (in ml)

Equivalents
Also N 
V(in litre)
Equivalents = N x V (in litre)
Milli equivalents = N x V (in ml)
 Equivalent Mass of Acid
Equivalent mass of acid =
Molecular mass of acid
Number of replacable H (Basicity)
Example:
Equivalent mass of HCl and H2SO4
 H  Cl
HCl 
 2H  SO4 
H2SO4 
1  35.5
Equivalent mass of HCl   36.5
1
2  1  32  4  16
Equivalent mass of H2SO4   49
2
 Equivalent Mass of Base
Equivalent mass of base =
Molecular mass
Number of replacable OH (Acidity)

Example:
Equivalent mass of NaOH and Ca(OH)2
 Na  OH
NaOH 
 Ca   2OH
Ca(OH)2 
23  16  1
Equivalent mass of NaOH   40
1
40  2  16  2  1
Equivalent mass of Ca(OH)2   37
2
 Equivalent mass of salt
Equivalent mass of salt =
Molecular mass
Total number of positive or
negative ch arg e
Example:
Equivalent mass of NaCl and MgCl2
NaCl   Na  Cl
23  35.5
Equivalent mass of NaCl   58.5
1
 Mg   2Cl
MgCl2 
240  2  35.5
Equivalent mass of MgCl2   47.5
2
 Illustrative example
Find the normality of H2SO4 having 49g of H2SO4 present
in 500 ml of solution.

Solution:

Mass of solute  1000

N
Equivalent mass  volume (in ml)

49  1000
N = 2N
98
 500
2
 Mole Fraction
• Mole fraction is the number of moles of one component divided by
the moles of all the components of the solution.
• In a two component solution, the mole fraction of one component,
A, has the symbol XA.
number of moles of A
X 
A number of moles of A + number of moles of B

number of moles of B
XB 
number of moles of A + number of moles of B
Note that X A  X B  1

The sum of all the mole fractions must equal 1.00.

Problem: Calculate the mol fraction of ethanol and water in a
sample of rectified spirit which contains 95% of ethanol by mass.

Solution:

95% of ethanol by mass means 95 g ethanol present in 100 g of

solution.
Hence, mass of water = 100 – 95 = 5 g
95
Moles of C2H5OH = = 2.07 moles
46
5
Moles of water(H2O) =  0 .28 m o
l
18
Mole fraction of C2H5OH = 2.07/ 0.28 + 2.07 = 0.88

Mole fraction of water = 1 – 0.88 = 0.12

 Activity and Activity Coefficients

• The term activity, a, is used to account for the effects of

electrolytes on chemical equilibria.
• The activity, or effective concentration, of species X
depends on the ionic strength of the medium and is
defined as
ax = γx [X]
where ax is the activity of X, [X] is its molar concentration,
and γx is a dimensionless quantity called the activity
coefficient.
• The activity coefficient and the activity of X vary with ionic
strength.
 Properties of Activity Coefficients

– In dilute solutions, the activity coefficient for a given species is

independent of the nature of the electrolyte and dependent
only on ionic strength.

– For a given ionic strength, the activity coefficient of an ion

departs farther from unity as the charge carried by the species
increases.

– At any given ionic strength, the activity coefficients of ions of

the same charge are approximately equal.

– The activity coefficient of a given ion describes its effective

behavior in all equilibria in which it participates.