Why do ionic compounds dissolve in water?

+25 votes
asked Jun 8, 2019 in Science by Princes (840 points)
edited Aug 10, 2019
I know many ionic compounds are dissolvable in water, but could you please explain it to me? I just can't understand what the textbook say…

2 Answers

+30 votes
answered Jul 8, 2019 by STANATASIA (970 points)
edited Aug 12, 2019
The structure of water makes it a polar molecule. This shows each hydrogen atom contain a slight positive charge, while the oxygen contain a slight negative charge.

Ionic compounds are crystalline in nature that contain the same number of both positive and negative ions. When you dissolve these ionic compounds in water, its molecules begin to attract water ions, which causes a separation between the ionic molecules. These atoms of hydrogen contained in water molecules are nearest to the ions of the compound with a negative charge, while the atoms of oxygen in the water molecule is nearest to the ions of ionic compounds with a positive charge.

Create a picture of each one of the ionic compounds enveloped by molecules of water and you will be able to get an idea of the reaction that takes place, but know that the reaction occurs at a very rapid rate the moment you add the compound to water.

This is nothing more than just a physical change because once you remove the water from the ionic compound, the compound is recovered back without any change.
+10 votes
answered Jun 23, 2019 by Lauren (700 points)
edited Jun 30, 2019
Why do ionic compounds dissolve in water? Ionic compounds are soluble in water because there are partial charges between the oxygen and hydrogen atoms in water, these partial charges attract the ions the solid compounds contain, and these makes it separate into different ions. Their electronegative differences is responsible for the partial +ve charge the hydrogen atoms contained in the water carries, as well as the partial negative -ve charge contained by the oxygen atom. The major process that takes place when the ionic compound is dissolved is the disintegration of the crystalline solid composition into free ions that move about unhindered in the solution.

Ionic compounds are compounds like table salt (NaCl), in which the ions are bound by bonds known as ionic bonds. An electrostatic opposite charges that exist between the ions are responsible for the formation of the bonds. Those negative charge - carrying ions are known as anions and the positive charge - carrying ions are called the cations. For example, in NaCl, the ions of sodium are called the cations while the ions of chlorine are called the anions.
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