Water As A Universal Solvent

Water is a “universal solvent” because no other liquid can dissolve any substance to the extent that it does. Life is incomplete without water as animals and plants cannot survive without water.

When water mixes with air, the ground, or our bodies, it usually takes along all kinds of valuable minerals, nutrients, and chemicals.

Water acts as an excellent solvent universally due to its chemical compositions and physical attributes. The polar arrangement of oxygen and hydrogen in water molecules is in such a way that on one side, oxygen has a negative charge, and on the other, hydrogen has a positive electrical charge. This is the main reason why other molecules are attracted to water molecules.

Properties of water

• Water is used multiple times in our day-to-day life in functions such as bathing, cooking, drinking, surviving, etc.

• A major part of the earth is covered with water, which makes it different from other molecules.

• Hydrogen bonding of water is a unique property.

  • It has a high dielectric constant and is known as hydrolysis.

  • It is amphoteric in nature because it can act as both acid and base.

  • Due to the intermolecular force of attraction, water has high viscosity.

Solvency of Water

Water is a universal solvent because its physical and chemical properties make it highly solvent. As oxygen and hydrogen have negative and positive charges, they attract other molecular compounds very easily. 

Water as a solvent: examples

As water has the ability to dissolve with many other substances, this is the main reason it is known as the best example of water solvent. Water is very important for every living organism on earth.

Below are the properties of some solvents that are easily mixed in water:

Example of water as a solvent with Ethanol

Ethanol is considered a very useful solvent, much like water. When these compounds mix with water, it becomes a very good example of water acting as a solvent. When ethanol mixes with other solvents such as acetone and benzene, it quickly mixes with it, the same way it happens with water.

Example of water as a solvent with Methanol

Methanol is another example of a water solvent as it also mixes easily with other compounds. It is also known as methyl alcohol. Methanol is commonly used by several industries as it is a solvent and helps in manufacturing various things like adhesive, colours, inks, and resins. Methanol is used by pharmaceutical industries for various ingredients used in the manufacture of products like vitamins.

Example of Water as a solvent with Acetone

Acetone has the ability to easily dissolve with both types of compounds, polar and nonpolar, that is why it is the best solvent. This solvent is used in many types of organic reactions.

Amphoteric in nature

Any chemical that is both basic and acidic in nature are called amphoteric. Water is neither acidic nor basic, and yet performs both functions. This shows its ability to absorb maximum protons. 

The above examples illustrate water as the perfect solvent.

Why does salt dissolve in water?

There are compounds like salt (NaCl) to which water is heavily attracted, and can also dislocate the attractive force that chloride and sodium have in the salt compound and therefore dissolve it. Due to electrical charges at the molecular level, salt dissolves in water.

Another main reason is that both salt and water compounds are in a polar position, with negative and positive charges on opposite sides of the molecules. Water, in a gaseous form, is the lightest gas on earth, whereas on the other hand, water as a liquid is a denser form. These unusual properties of water add up uniqueness to it.

Salt compounds carry a bond that is ionic because they both are charged electrically, whereas on the other hand, the sodium ion is positively charged and the chloride ion is charged negatively. This is how water molecules are ionic by nature, and the bond is known as covalent. It has two hydrogen atoms, both of which have located themselves with their positive charge on one place of an oxygen atom, which has charged negatively.

The strong covalent bonds of water are stronger than that of the ionic bond in the salt molecules, which is why salt dissolves in water very easily. Any chemical which is both basic and acidic in nature is called amphoteric. Water is neither acidic nor basic and performs both functions. This shows its ability to absorb maximum protons.

Conclusion

Water is a “universal solvent” because no other liquid can dissolve any substance the way water does. Water acts as an excellent solvent due to its chemical compositions and physical attributes. In water molecules, their arrangement is in a polar way as oxygen has a negative charge and hydrogen has a positive electrical charge.

Water has a powerful moisturising effect and is relatively high in dielectric constant. Water always reacts strongly with salt ions and forms a hydrated shell around them.