BIOL 104 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Freezing-Point Depression, Colligative Properties, Molality
Document Summary
A solution is a homogeneous mixture (has a constant composition throughout) which consists of a dissolved substance, the solute, and a dissolving medium, the solvent. A solute need not to be a solid. It can be a gas, such as carbon dioxide, co2, or a liquid, such as ethylene glycol (antifreeze in car"s cooling system). If the solution contains two liquids, the liquid that is in the greater amount is called the solvent. Knowing the actual strength of a solution is more useful than knowing in general terms if it is dilute or concentrated. The concentration of solutions can be described quantitatively in many ways, such as molarity, molality, and mole fraction. Some properties of a solution depend on the concentration of particles, such as molecules or ions in the solution, rather than on particular characteristics of the molecular or ionic substance. The number of particles in a solvent can affect the freezing or boiling point of solvent.
