CHAPTER 8

SOLUTIONS

ASHA RUSSEL
ASST. SCIENCE TUTOR ‘A’
 Strength of a Solution

Important terms:
Solute: is the solid or liquid to be dissolved.
 Eg: various powdered drugs, chemical salts and liquid
nutritional supplements

Solvent (diluent): is the liquid which dissolves the solid

solute or liquid solute.
 Eg: sterile water and normal saline

Solution: is the liquid resulting from the combination of

the solute and solvent.
 Strength of a Solution

Examples of strength using stated units of

measurement:

5 mg 25 mcg 8g
, , and
mL 5 mL L
 Strength of a Solution
Solution strength can also be stated without
explicit units of measurement.
For example, a solution which is 1 part iodine in
2 parts of solution has strength of:

1:2 Ratio

1
strength Fraction
2

50% Percent
 Strength of a Solution
 Measure the Amount of Drug (Solute) in either
g or mL
 Measure the Amount of the Solution in mL

1:100 NaCl solution has

1 g NaCl in 100 mL of the solution

1/3 strength solution of Iodine has

1 mL of Iodine in 3 mL of solution.

7% magnesium sulfate solution has

7 g magnesium sulfate in 100 mL of solution
 Find the Strength
 What is the strength of a 500 milliliter solution
that contains 50 mL of iodine?

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50 mL
=
500 mL

The strength is 1:10, 1/10 strength, or 10%

 Find the Strength
 What is the strength of a 200 milliliter solution
that contains 50 g of NaCl?

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50 g
=
200 mL

5
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The strength is 1:4, ¼ strength, or 25%

 Find the Amount of Solute in a Given
Amount of Solution of Known Strength

 How many grams of dextrose would you need

to prepare 1000 milliliters of a 5% solution?

Amount of solution is 1,000 milliliters.

 5  5g
Strength is 5%  This means
 100  100 mL
 Find the Amount of Solute in a Given
Amount of Solution of Known Strength

Convert 1,000 mL of solution to g of dextrose

5g
1,000 mL   ?g
100 mL
5g
1,000 mL   50 g
100 mL

So, you need 50 grams of dextrose to prepare

1,000 milliliters of a 5% solution.
 Finding the Amount of Solute
 How would you prepare 250 milliliters of a
1/2% creosol solution? Creosol comes in liquid
form.

Amount of solution is 250 milliliters.

Strength is ½% or 0.5%
0.5 g Creosol
This means
100 mL Solution
 Finding the Amount of Solute
Convert 250 mL solution to ? mL of Creosol

250 mL Solution 0.5 g Creosol

 =? mL of Creosol
1 100 mL Solution

250 mL Solution 0.5 g Creosol

 =1.25 mL Creosol
1 100 mL Solution

So, 1.25 milliliters of creosol is diluted with water to

250 milliliters of solution.
Find the Amount of Solution of Known Strength
Containing a Given Amount of Solute

 How many milliliters of a 20% magnesium

sulfate solution will contain 40 grams of the
solute magnesium sulfate?

You want to convert the 40

grams of pure drug to
milliliters of solution.

40 g = ? mL
Find the Amount of Solution of Known Strength
Containing a Given Amount of Solute

 In a 20% solution, there are 20 grams of solute

per 100 mL of solution. So, the strength is

20 g
100 mL
Find the Amount of Solution of Known Strength
Containing a Given Amount of Solute

20 g
100 mL
40 g 100 mL
  ?g
1 20 g

40 g 100 mL
  200 mL
1 20 g

So, 200 mL of a 20% magnesium sulfate solution

contains 40 g of magnesium sulfate.
 Finding the Amount of Solute
 How many ounces of full-strength Sustacal are
needed to make 16 ounces of ¼ strength
Sustacal?
Finding the Amount of Solute

1 1 oz (Sustical)
strength means
4 4 oz (Solution)

16 oz Solution = ? oz Sustical
 Finding the Amount of Solute

16 oz Solution 1 oz (Sustical)
 = ? oz Sustical
1 4 oz (Solution)

16 oz Solution 1 oz (Sustical)
 = 4 oz
1 4 oz (Solution)

So, 4 oz of full-strength Sustical are needed

to make 16 ounces of ¼ strength Sustical.
 Chapter Summary

• The strength of a solution is the ratio of the

amount of solute dissolved in the solution to
the total volume of the solution.

• The strength of a solution may be expressed

in the form of a ratio, fraction, or percentage.
 Chapter Summary
• A 1/2 strength solution is a 1:2 or a 50%
solution, and should not be confused with a
1/2 % solution.

• The amount of solute dissolved in the

solution should be expressed in milliliters if
the solute is a liquid.

• The amount of solute dissolved in the

solution should be expressed in grams if the
solute is a solid or powder.
 Chapter Summary

• The volume of a solution should be expressed

in milliliters.

• To determine the amount of solute contained

in a given amount of a solution of known
strength, use the strength as the known
equivalence.
 Chapter Summary

To determine amount of a solution of known

strength containing a given amount of solute,
use the strength as the known equivalence.
 Chapter Summary
The strength of a particular solution may be
written in many different forms. The following
strengths are all equivalent:

• With stated Units of Measurement

Rates { 500 mg/mL

500 mg per mL
500 mg
1 mL

Equivalence 500 mg = 1 mL
 Chapter Summary

• Without stated Units of Measurement

Fraction 1/2 strength

Ratio1:2
Percentage 50%