Hydrogen Bonding and Water

These flashcards cover key vocabulary related to hydrogen bonding, water properties, and chemical interactions, crucial for understanding biological processes.

Electronegativity

An atom’s ability to attract electrons towards it in a chemical bond.

Cation

A positively charged ion, such as Na+.

Anion

A negatively charged ion, such as Cl-.

Hydrogen bond

A bond formed between a hydrogen atom covalently bonded to an electronegative atom and another electronegative atom.

Ionic bond

A type of non-covalent bond where oppositely charged ions attract.

Hydrophilic

Substances that attract water and interact favorably with it.

Hydrophobic

Substances that do not attract water and avoid mixing with it.

Polarity

The distribution of electrical charge around atoms, molecules, or chemical groups.

Surface tension

The cohesive force between liquid molecules at the surface of a liquid, caused by hydrogen bonding.

Solvent

A substance that dissolves a solute, forming a solution.

Hydrophobic interactions

Interactions that occur between nonpolar molecules when in a polar solvent like water.

Hydrogen bonding network

The complex arrangement of hydrogen bonds formed between water molecules.

Entropy

A measure of the disorder or randomness in a system.

Van der Waals forces

Weak attractions between molecules or parts of molecules that result from transient local partial charges.

Biologically important atoms

Atoms such as Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, and Hydrogen that play a critical role in biological molecules.