Question

When making punch, you add half a cup of sugar and 2 cups of orange juice to half a gallon of water. What is the orange juice in this mixture?

a
Electrolyte
b
Solvent
c
Nonelectrolyte
d
Solute

Answer 1

In the mixture you described, the orange juice is considered a **solute**.

Here's a breakdown of the terms:

- **Solvent**: The substance that dissolves the solute; in this case, the water is the solvent.
- **Solute**: The substance that is dissolved in the solvent; in this case, the orange juice (and sugar) are solutes.
- **Electrolyte**: A substance that produces ions in solution and can conduct electricity; sugar is a non-electrolyte, while orange juice contains ions and nutrients but is not typically classified as an electrolyte in this context.
- **Nonelectrolyte**: A substance that does not produce ions in solution, such as sugar.

Therefore, the correct answer is **d. Solute**.