Question

When a solute dissolves into a solvent, what affects the properties of the solution?
Responses

concentration
concentration

diffusion
diffusion

hydration
hydration

osmosis

Answer 1

Correct answers: concentration and hydration.

- Concentration (how much solute per amount of solution) directly controls many solution properties (density, boiling/freezing point, vapor pressure, osmotic pressure, conductivity, reactivity).
- Hydration (solvation) — the interactions between solvent molecules and solute ions/molecules — changes properties as well (solubility, conductivity, colligative effects, boiling/freezing points).

Diffusion and osmosis are processes that result from concentration differences:
- Diffusion is the spreading of solute molecules through the solvent (a transport process), not an intrinsic property of the final solution.
- Osmosis is the net flow of solvent across a semipermeable membrane driven by solute concentration differences; osmotic pressure is a property, but osmosis itself is a process that occurs under specific conditions (a membrane).