When solid solutes are dissolved in water, their molecules or ions readily move about in solution.
Explanation level
Introduction
When solid solutes are dissolved in water, their molecules or ions readily move about in solution. They come in contact with one another readily in solution, so they combine easily.
The quantity of a solute present in a given amount of solvent or solution is called the concentration of a solution.
Recall that you have learned the difference between a dilute and a concentrated solution:
A dilute solution is one whose concentration is relatively low.
A concentrated solution is one whose concentration is relatively high.
You can find dilute and concentrated solutions of common acids and bases in your chemistry laboratory.
Chemists use many concentration units. In this section, we will discuss two important ones:
Molarity (M) — expressed in mol/dm³
Strength of a solution — expressed in g/dm³ or g/cm³
Concentration units are important in many fields:
Pharmaceuticals — where precise solution concentrations are critical for safe and effective medications
Industry — where accurate concentrations are needed for chemical reactions
Laboratory work — where titrations and reactions depend on knowing exact concentrations
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