Study Guides/Chemistry/Saturated Solution Meaning
Study Guide · Chemistry

Saturated Solution Meaning and Examples

When you mix sugar into water, it dissolves easily. But if you keep adding more and more sugar, eventually it stops dissolving and settles at the bottom. This is the concept of a Saturated Solution, taught in Class 9 Chemistry (Is Matter Around Us Pure).

Question (Click to Flip)

What happens if you cool down a saturated solution?

Answer

If you cool down a saturated solution, its capacity to hold the solute decreases. As a result, the excess dissolved solute will start to turn back into solid crystals and settle at the bottom.

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Key Facts

The amount of solute present in a saturated solution at a specific temperature is called its Solubility. For example, the solubility of salt (NaCl) in water at 20°C is about 36 grams per 100 mL of water.

Definition of Saturated Solution

A Saturated Solution is a solution in which no more solute can be dissolved in the solvent at a given temperature.

At this stage, the solution has reached its maximum capacity. The point at which it cannot dissolve any more solute is called the Saturation Point.

Effect of Temperature

The saturation point is highly dependent on temperature.

  • If you take a saturated sugar solution and heat it, it will suddenly be able to dissolve more sugar. (It becomes unsaturated again).
  • Therefore, definition is always stated as 'at a given temperature'.

Types of Solutions

  1. Unsaturated Solution: A solution that can still dissolve more solute at that temperature.
  2. Saturated Solution: A solution that cannot dissolve any more solute.
  3. Supersaturated Solution: A highly unstable solution created by heating a saturated solution, adding more solute, and then cooling it slowly. It contains more dissolved solute than it normally should at room temperature.

Questions and Answers

What happens if you cool down a saturated solution?+

If you cool down a saturated solution, its capacity to hold the solute decreases. As a result, the excess dissolved solute will start to turn back into solid crystals and settle at the bottom.

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