A sparingly soluble compound is one that dissolves only to a limited extent in a solvent, typically water. Its solubility is typically expressed in units of moles per liter (mol/L) or grams per liter (g/L). The solubility of a sparingly soluble compound is influenced by several factors, including the temperature, pressure, and presence of other solutes.
Sparingly Soluble Salts
A sparingly soluble salt is a chemical compound that dissolves in water to a limited extent. This means that only a small amount of the salt will dissolve in water, and the rest will remain as a solid. The solubility of a salt is determined by its chemical composition and the temperature of the water. The solubility of a salt increases as the temperature of the water increases due to the increased kinetic energy of water molecules at higher temperature range.
Sparingly soluble salts are often used in chemical reactions because they can be easily precipitated out of solution by decreasing the solubility of their solution, usually through temperature decrease or addition of anti-solvent. This can be useful for separating and purifying chemicals.
Here are some of the properties of sparingly soluble salts:
- They have a low solubility in water.
- They can be precipitated out of solution by adding a common ion.
- They can be used in chemical reactions to form other compounds.
Here is a table of some common sparingly soluble salts and their solubilities in water:
| Salt | Solubility (g/L) |
|---|---|
| Calcium carbonate | 0.0013 |
| Barium sulfate | 0.0024 |
| Silver chloride | 0.0019 |
| Lead sulfate | 0.0045 |
Sparingly soluble salts can either be ionic or covalent in nature. For insoluble ionic compounds the solubility equilibrium is affected by a phenomenon called the common ion effect. This is a decrease in the solubility of a sparingly soluble salt when a soluble salt containing a common ion is added to the solution. For example, the solubility of calcium carbonate is decreased when calcium chloride is added to the solution.
For insoluble covalent compounds, the solubility is not affected by the common ion effect. Instead, the solubility of these compounds is determined by the polarity of the solvent. The more polar the solvent, the greater the solubility of the covalent compound.
Question 1: What is “sparingly soluble” in chemistry?
Answer: Sparingly soluble is a term used in chemistry to describe a substance that has a low solubility in a specific solvent. This means that the substance dissolves only to a limited extent in the solvent, resulting in a saturated solution.
Question 2: How is sparingly soluble different from insoluble and soluble?
Answer: Insoluble substances do not dissolve in a solvent at all, regardless of the amount added. Soluble substances, on the other hand, dissolve completely in a solvent, resulting in an unsaturated solution. Sparingly soluble substances fall in between these two extremes, dissolving only to a certain extent before reaching saturation.
Question 3: What factors can affect the sparingly soluble nature of a substance?
Answer: The sparingly soluble nature of a substance can be influenced by several factors, including temperature, pressure, solvent type, and the presence of other substances in the solution. For example, increasing the temperature of a solution can increase the solubility of a sparingly soluble substance, while increasing the pressure can have the opposite effect.
Well, there you have it! Sparingly soluble chemistry is a fascinating topic that can be a bit tricky to grasp at first. But now that you have this handy-dandy guide, you’ll be able to impress your friends and family with your newfound knowledge. Thanks for taking the time to read, and be sure to visit again later for more chemistry fun!