1.3 - Solubility & Solubility Curves

Solute, solvent, solution and saturated solution

• When a solid dissolves in a liquid, the liquid is the solvent and the dissolved solid is the solute.
• Together they form a solution - a mixture of solute and solvent that doesn't separate back out on its own.
• Soluble describes a substance that dissolves in a given solvent; insoluble describes one that won't. Common salt is soluble in water, but sand is not.

Saturated solutions

A saturated solution contains the maximum amount of dissolved solute possible at that temperature; no more solute will dissolve.