Solubility

Imagine making a lemonade. You add sugar, and it disappears into the water. Why does this happen?

This process demonstrates solubility, which is the amount of solute dissolved in a given amount of the solvent at a given temperature.

Let's find out how temperature changes the way a solute dissolves in a solvent.

For example, imagine pouring hot tea into one glass and cold tea into another.

Now, add sugar to both. You notice that sugar dissolves much faster in hot tea.

This happens because, at higher temperatures, sugar molecules gain more energy and move faster.

With more energy, they collide with water molecules more often, helping them dissolve quickly.

But does temperature always increase solubility? Not for gases. Unlike solids, gases become less soluble at higher temperatures.

As temperature increases, gas molecules move faster and escape more easily from the liquid.

Now, consider increasing gas pressure with a piston by compressing it, making the gases dissolve in liquid. This is why soda is bottled under high pressure to retain carbon dioxide.