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UNIT 5: SOLUTIONS AND COLLOIDS

5.1 Intended Learning Outcomes

a. Illustrate how solutions are formed;
b. Describe the different types of solutions;
c. Discuss the factors affecting solubility and rate of dissolution;
d. Express the concentration of solution;
e. Describe the colligative properties of a solution;
f. Solve problems on colligative properties, and
g. Classify different colloidal systems according to phase.

5.2 Introduction
In a solution, the particles (molecules or ions) are small and they are bound to the solvent
molecules so that they are homogeneously dispersed throughout the solution. In a
precipitate, the particles are not bound to solvent molecules and are large enough to settle at
the bottom of the container. This lesson will help you understand that mixtures are classified
based on the size of their particles.

5.3 Solutions and Colloids

5.3.1 Types of Solution
5.3.2 Concentrations of Solutions
5.3.3 Solution Stoichiometry
5.3.4 Colligative Properties
5.3.5 Osmosis and Osmotic Pressure
5.3.6 Colloids

5.3.1 Types of Solutions

Solutions are homogeneous mixtures. The major component is called solvent, and the
minor components are called solute. If both components in a solution are 50%, the term
solute can be assigned to either component. When gas or solid material dissolves in a liquid,
the gas or solid material is called the solute. When two liquids dissolve in each other, the
major component is called the solvent and the minor component is called the solute.

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Figure 1. Types of Solutions

Many chemical reactions are carried out in solutions, and solutions are also closely
related to our everyday lives. The air we breathe, the liquids we drink, and the fluids in our
body are all solutions. Furthermore, we are surrounded by solutions such as the air and
waters (in rivers, lakes and oceans).

On the topic of solutions, we include the following sections.

1. Types of Solutions: gaseous, liquid and solid solutions are based on the states of the
solution.
2. Solution Stoichiometry: expressing concentration in various units (mass per unit
volume, moles per unit volume, percentage and fractions), reaction stoichiometry
calculations involving solutions.
3. Solutions of Electrolytes: solutions of acids, bases, and salts in which the solutes
dissociate into positive and negative hydrated ions.
4. Metathesis or Exchange Reactions: reaction of electrolytes leading to neutral
molecules, gases, and solids.

Solving problems of solution stoichiometry requires the concepts introduced in

stoichiometry, which also provides the basis for the discussion on reactions.

Types of Solutions

At the molecular level, molecules and ions of a solute are completely mixed with and interact
with those of the solvent when a solute dissolves in a solvent. This type of mixing
is homogeneous because no boundary is visible in the entire solution. In a mixture,
differences may exist between regions or parts of the whole system.

Material exists in three states: solid, liquid, and gas. Solutions exist in all these states:

1. Gaseous mixtures are usually homogeneous and all gas mixtures are gas-gas
solutions. For quantitative treatment of this type of solutions, we will devote a unit to
gases. The atmosphere is a gaseous solution that consists of nitrogen, oxygen, argon,

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carbon dioxide, water, methane, and some other minor components, but its water and
carbon dioxide contents may vary depending on the temperature and place.
2. When molecules of gas, solid or liquid are dispersed and mixed with those of liquid,
the homogeneous (uniform) states are called liquid solutions. Solid, liquid and gas
dissolve in liquid to form liquid solutions. In general, the terms solution and liquid
solution are synonymous. Gases and liquid solutions have attracted the attention of
most chemists, while material scientists and engineers are more interested in the
manufacture and properties of solid solutions.
3. Many alloys, ceramics, and polymer blends are solid solutions. Within a certain
range, copper and zinc dissolve in each other and harden to give solid solutions called
brass. Silver, gold, and copper form many different alloys with unique colors and
appearances. Alloys and solid solutions are important in the world of materials.

Solubility

The maximum amount of a substance dissolved in a given volume of solvent is

called solubility. Often, the solubility in water is expressed in gram/100 mL. For example,
the solubilities of some common substances are given in the Table of Solubility.

A solution that has reached the maximum solubility is called a saturated solution.
Often, another phase such as gas, liquid, or solid of the solute is present and in contact within
the solution. In general, there is no net change in the amount of solute dissolved, but the
system is by no means static. In fact, the solute is constantly being dissolved and deposited
at an equal rate. Such a phenomenon is called equilibrium.

In case another phase is not present, a solution may be unsaturated or supersaturated.

Yes, due to what can be attributed to a kinetic factor, a solution may stay supersaturated for
a long time. When promoted by a seed, a solution may start to precipitate quickly. Sodium
acetate has a very high solubility at say 270 K. In fact, it can dissolve in the water of
crystallization similar to melting. When cooled, such a solution stays in a meta-stable state.
When a seeding crystal is present or started due to the surface of another medium, the entire
solution will solidify. During the crystallization process, heat is evolved, and the solution
becomes warm. Thus, such a solution, when properly packaged, has been used as hand
warmer packs for skiers.

One useful classification of materials is polarity. Substances such

as H2H2, O2O2, N2N2, CH4CH4, CCl4CCl4 etc. are called non-polar compounds,
whereas H2OH2O, NH3NH3, CH3OHCH3OH, NONO, COCO, HClHCl, H2SH2S, PH3PH
3 etc. are called polar compounds.

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Polar materials dissolve polar materials whereas non-polar materials will mix and
become true solutions. An additional factor to consider is the hydrogen bonding. For
example, ethanol and water are completely miscible at any proportion due to the extensive
hydrogen bonding among their molecules.

Electrolytes or ionic substances are soluble in water due to hydration. Due to the
strong polarity of the water molecule, the positive and negative ions are pushed apart. In
general, reasonable size ions are believed to have six water molecules around them, but these
water molecules readily exchange with those in the medium.

There are many applications of this rule. On the small scale, personal hygiene and
household cleaning requires various types of cleaning agents. As a challenge is the research
and development of cleaning agents in industry, where you can find jobs or hire experts to
do the R&D.

Other factor such as temperature and pressure also affects the solubility of a solvent.
Thus, in specifying solubility, one should be aware of the factors.

Properties of Solutions

Properties of a solution are very different from those of pure forms of its components.
For example, only pure water freezes or solidifies at 273 K, and boils at 373 K. The freezing
point of ocean water is lower. Would you expect the boiling point of a salt solution to be
lower? Actually, it's higher!

A quantitative study of the physical properties of solutions is usually given in a course

in thermodynamics, and we only mention some of the applications here just to raise your
awareness of the solution.

5.3.2 Concentration of Solutions

Many people have a qualitative idea of what is meant by concentration. Anyone who
has made instant coffee or lemonade knows that too much powder gives a strongly flavored,
highly concentrated drink, whereas too little results in a dilute solution that may be hard to
distinguish from water. In chemistry, the concentration of a solution is the quantity of
a solute that is contained in a particular quantity of solvent or solution. Knowing the
concentration of solutes is important in controlling the stoichiometry of reactants for solution
reactions. Chemists use many different methods to define concentrations, some of which are
described in this section.

Molarity

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The most common unit of concentration is molarity, which is also the most useful for
calculations involving the stoichiometry of reactions in solution. The molarity (M) is defined
as the number of moles of solute present in exactly 1 L of solution. It is, equivalently, the
number of millimoles of solute present in exactly 1 mL of solution:

molarity=molesofsolutelitersofsolution=mmolesofsolutemillilitersofsolution

The units of molarity are therefore moles per liter of solution (mol/L), abbreviated
as M. An aqueous solution that contains 1 mol (342 g) of sucrose in enough water to give a
final volume of 1.00 L has a sucrose concentration of 1.00 mol/L or 1.00 M. In chemical
notation, square brackets around the name or formula of the solute represent the molar
concentration of a solute. Therefore,

[sucrose]=1.00M

is read as “the concentration of sucrose is 1.00 molar.” The relationships between volume,
molarity, and moles may be expressed as either

VLMmol/L=L(molL)=moles

or

VmLMmmol/mL=mL(mmolmL)=mmoles

For example,

The solution contains 10.0 g of cobalt(II) chloride dihydrate, CoCl 2•2H2O, in enough
ethanol to make exactly 500 mL of solution. What is the molar concentration
of CoCl2∙2H2OCoCl2•2H2O?

Given: mass of solute and volume of solution

Asked for: concentration (M)

Strategy:

To find the number of moles of CoCl2∙2H2OCoCl2•2H2O, divide the mass of the compound
by its molar mass. Calculate the molarity of the solution by dividing the number of moles of
solute by the volume of the solution in liters.

Solution:

The molar mass of CoCl2•2H2O is 165.87 g/mol. Therefore,

molesCoCl2⋅2H2O=(10.0g165.87g/mol)=0.0603molmolesCoCl2⋅2H2O=(10.0g165.87g/mol)
=0.0603mol

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The volume of the solution in liters is

volume=500mL(1L1000mL)=0.500Lvolume=500mL(1L1000mL)=0.500L

Molarity is the number of moles of solute per liter of solution, so the molarity of the solution
is

molarity=0.0603mol0.500L=0.121M=CoCl2⋅H2O

5.3.3 SOLUTION STOICHIOMETRY

Stoichiometry allows us to work in solution by giving us the concept

of solution concentration, or molarity. ... It is defined as the moles of a substance contained
in one liter of solution. For instance, if a solution has a concentration of 1.20 M NaCl, this
means that there are 1.20 moles of NaCl per liter of solution.

5.3.4 COLLIGATIVE PROPERTIES

Colligative properties are the physical changes that result from adding solute to a
solvent. Colligative Properties depend on how many solute particles are present as well as
the solvent amount, but they do NOT depend on the type of solute particles, although do
depend on the type of solvent.

Note: The properties of solutions differ from the properties of the pure solvents forming them
after dissolving a non–volatile substances at the same conditions, these new
properties are called Colligative properties.

Colligative ( Collective ) Properties of Solutions

They are properties whose values depend only on the number of solute particles per
unit volume of solution and not on the type of solute , Collective properties of solutions are
vapour pressure depression , boiling point elevation and freezing point depression .

Vapor pressure depression

When a pure liquid is left in an open beaker , It evaporates completely , But , when it
is in a closed container , both liquid and vapor are present . Vaporization and condensation
occur , at equilibrium , the vaporization rate is equal to the condensation rate and the
pressure exerted by this vapor is called Vapor pressure. Vapor pressure is the pressure that
vapor effects on the liquid surface , when the vapor is at a dynamic equilibrium with its liquid
inside a closed container at a constant temperature and pressure The vapor pressure of a
pure solvent is affected by dissolving a non-volatile solute in it to form a solution as follows:

PURE SOLVENT
The surface molecules which exposed to vaporization process are the solvent
molecules only , The force that has to be overcome is the attraction force between the solvent
molecules with each other .

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SOLUTION
The surface molecules are the solvent and the solute molecules , The number of solvent
molecules which exposed to vaporization process decreases , The force that has to be
overcome is the attraction force between solvent and solute molecules , So, the vapor
pressure of a pure solvent is higher than the vapor pressure of the solution at the same
temperature .

Why the solution vapor pressure is lower than the vapor pressure of the pure solvent?
Because the number of solvent surface molecules in solution is less than that in the pure
solvent and the attraction force between solvent and solute molecules in the solution is
stronger than the attraction force between solvent molecules with each other, So, the number
of solvent molecules which exposed to vaporization process decreases in the solution .

BOILING POINT ELEVATION

When vapor pressure of liquid equals the atmospheric pressure , the liquid starts to
boil and in this case, the boiling point of the liquid is called The natural ( normal ) boiling
point .
The natural ( normal ) boiling point is the temperature at which the vapor pressure of
liquid equals the atmospheric pressure , The boiling point can be used as an indicator for the
purity of solvent because the measured boiling point of the pure liquids equals its natural
boiling point .

Application
Pure water is boiled at 100 degree Celsius at atmospheric pressure (1 atm), However, the
addition of a certain quantity of salt in the water raises the boiling point of the solution to T1.
The solution boiling point is higher than the boiling point of pure solvent which forms it
because vapor pressure of solution is less than the vapor pressure of the pure solvent which
forms it. So, the solution needs more energy until its vapor pressure equals to atmospheric
pressure to boil.

Measured boiling point

It is the temperature at which vapor pressure of liquid equals the pressure exerted or
acted on it , Boiling point elevation is directly proportional to the number of moles of ions in
the solution .
The boiling point of the aqueous solution of sodium chloride is equal to the boiling
point of an aqueous solution of potassium nitrate because each of them produces the same
number of moles of ions in the solution .
The boiling point of an aqueous solution of sodium carbonate Na2CO3 is higher than the
boiling point of an aqueous solution of the sodium chloride NaCl which has the same
concentration .
Because the number of moles of ions dissolved in the solution of Na2NaO3 is higher
than in the solution of NaCl and the boiling point increases by increasing the number of
moles of ions dissolved in the solution .

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Freezing point depression

You know that Freezing point of solution is less than freezing point of pure solvent
which forms it, Freezing point depression is directly proportional to the number of dissolved
solute particles in the solution .

Dissolving solute particles

Solute molecules : When the substance is not ionized into ions in the water such as
sugar ( non-electrolyte ), when 1 mol of any non-electrolyte is dissolved in 1 kg of water the
resulting solution freezes at ( – 1.86 degree Celsius ), Such as solution of 1 mole ( 180 g ) of
glucose in 1 kg of water freezes at ( – 1.86 degree Celsius ) .
Solute ions : When the substance is dissociated into ions in the water such as NaCl (
electrolyte ), The freezing point of electrolytic solution = number of moles of ions in the
solution × ( – 1.86 degree Celsius ).

Such as Solution of 1 mol ( 58.5 g ) of NaCl in 1 kg of the water freezes at ( – 3.72 degree
Celsius ) , Because 1 mol of NaCl produces 2 mol of ions in water [ 2 ×( – 1.86 degree Celsius
) ] = – 3.72 degree Celsius .
Freezing point of the solution is less than Freezing point of its pure solvent as the
attraction forces between solvent and solute molecules prevent the transformation of solvent
molecules from liquid state to solid state at a freezing point of the pure solvent. So, the
temperature of the solution has to drop below the freezing point of pure solvent until the
solvent particles are separated from the solute crystals. Adding salt to snow-covered roads
in cold places to prevent cars from slipping and decrease the number of accidents where the
salt dissolves in the water forming a solution that freezes at the temperature below the
freezing point of pure water, So, the amount of snow will decrease.

5.3.6 Colloids
A colloid is a heterogeneous mixture whose particle size is intermediate between
those of a solution and a suspension. The dispersed particles are spread evenly throughout
the dispersion medium, which can be a solid, liquid, or gas. Because the dispersed particles
of a colloid are not as large as those of a suspension, they do not settle out upon
standing. The Table below summarizes the properties and distinctions between solutions,
colloids, and suspensions.
Colloids are unlike solutions because their dispersed particles are much larger than those of
a solution. The dispersed particles of a colloid cannot be separated by filtration, but they
scatter light, a phenomenon called the Tyndall effect .

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Tyndall Effect

When light is passed through a true solution, the dissolved particles are too small to
deflect the light. However, the dispersed particles of a colloid, being larger, do deflect
light. The Tyndall effect is the scattering of visible light by colloidal particles. You have
undoubtedly “seen” a light beam as it passes through fog, smoke, or a scattering of dust
particles suspended in air. All three are examples of colloids. Suspensions may scatter light,
but if the number of suspended particles is sufficiently large, the suspension may simply be
opaque and the light scattering will not occur.

Table 1

Properties of Solutions, Colloids, and Suspensions

Solutions Colloids Suspension

homogeneous heterogeneous heterogeneous

Particle size: 0.01-1 nm; Do not separate on standing Particles settle out
atoms, ions, or molecules

Cannot be separated by Cannot be separated by Can be separated by

filtration filtration filtration

Do not scatter light Scatter light (Tyndall effect) May either scatter light
or be opaque

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Figure 2. The Tyndall effect allows sunlight to be seen as it passes through a fine mist.
Image by Dave Stokes, CC-BY.

Examples of Colloids

The table below lists examples of colloidal systems, most of which are very
familiar. The dispersed phase describes the particles, while the dispersion medium is the
material in which the particles are distributed.

Table 2
Classes of Colloids
Class of Colloid Dispersed Dispersion Examples
Phase Medium
Sol and gel solid liquid paint, jellies, blood, gelation,
mud
Solid aerosol solid gas smoke, dust in air
Solid emulsion liquid solid cheese, butter
Liquid emulsion liquid liquid milk, mayonnaise
Liquid aerosol Liquid gas fog, mist, clouds, aerosol spray
Foam Gas solid marshmallow
foam Gas liquid whipped cream, shaving cream

Another property of a colloidal system is the observed when the colloids are studied
under a light microscope. The colloids scintillate, reflecting brief flashes of light because the
colloidal particles move in a rapid and random fashion. This phenomenon, called Brownian
motion, is caused by collisions between the small colloidal particles and the molecules of the
dispersion medium.

Emulsions

Butter and mayonnaise are examples of a class of colloids called emulsions. An emulsion is
a colloidal dispersion of a liquid in either a liquid or a solid. A stable emulsion requires an
emulsifying agent to be present. Mayonnaise is made in part of oil and vinegar. Since oil is
nonpolar and vinegar is an aqueous solution and polar, the two do not mix and would
quickly separate into layers. However, the addition of egg yolk causes the mixture to become
stable and not separate. Egg yolk is capable of interacting with both the polar vinegar and
the nonpolar oil. The egg yolk is called the emulsifying agent. Soap acts as an emulsifying

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agent between grease and water. Grease cannot be simply rinsed off your hands or another
surface because it is insoluble. However, the soap stabilizes a grease-water mixture because
one end of a soap molecule is polar and the other end is nonpolar. This allows the grease to
be removed from your hands or your clothing by washing with soapy water.

5.3 REFERENCES

Antero, E., Alumaga, M. & Estanilla, L. (2004). Conceptual and Functional Chemistry:
Modular Approach. Manila: Vibal Publishing House, Inc.
America, New York, NY 10020.
Brown, T. (2000). Chemistry: The Central Science, 8thEd. , New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,
Inc.
Monserate, J., Salazar, J. & Cardenas, C. (2009). Chemistry. The science where matter
matters!, Malabon: Mutya Publishing House, Inc.

Smith, Gorrzynski (2013). General, Organic & Biological Chemistry: McGraw-Hill

International edition., McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 1221.

5.4 Acknowledgment

The images, tables, figures and information contained in this module were
taken from the references cited above.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay