BRAINCAKEPolar Solvents and Solubility
Polar molecules and ionic substances dissolve in polar solvents such as water because the molecules of the polar solvent attract the ions or polarised atoms and are able to form bonds with them. The covalent or ionic bonds break and the solvent molecules surround the ions and form ion-dipole bonds.
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Key terms in this lesson
- Ion
- A positively or negatively charged atom or group of atoms, formed by the loss or gain of electrons.
- Giant ionic lattice
- A regular three-dimensional structure of oppositely charged ions held together by strong electrostatic forces extending throughout the structure.
- Dipole
- A separation of opposite partial charges caused by an uneven distribution of the bonding electron pair.
More in Shapes and Intermolecular Forces
- Polyatomic ions.
- More examples.
- Electronegativity
- Bond Polarity
- Induced Dipole-Dipole Interactions (London Forces)
- Permanent dipole-dipole interactions
- Solubility of Simple Molecules
- Hydrogen Bonds
All 13 lessons in Shapes and Intermolecular Forces · All OCR AS-level Chemistry topics