Chapter 4: Reactions in Aqueous Solutions

Aqueous (aq)

A solid dissolved in water.

Solutions

Homogeneous mixtures of two or more pure substances.

Solvent

The liquid present in greatest abundance.

Solutes

All other substances, typically solid.

Dissociation

The process where an ionic compound breaks up into ions.

Electrolytes

Substances that dissociate into ions when dissolved in water.

Nonelectrolytes

Substances that may dissolve in water but do not dissociate into ions.

Acids

Substances that ionize in aqueous solution to form H+.

Bases

Substances that react with or accept H+ ions, increasing the concentration of OH-.

Precipitation reactions

Occur when two solutions containing soluble salts are mixed, producing an insoluble salt.

Oxidation

The loss of electrons.

Reduction

The gain of electrons.

Oxidation Numbers

Assigned to elements in compounds to track electron transfer.

Molarity

Measure of concentration in moles of solute per liter of solution.

Equation: \dfrac{moles\:of\:solute}{volume\:of\:solute\:in\:Liters}

Dilution

Process of reducing the concentration of a solution by adding more solvent.

Equation: M_{1}V_{1}=M_{2}V_{2}