What happens to the vapor pressure of a solution as the concentration of a non-volatile solute increases?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
What happens to the vapor pressure of a solution as the concentration of a non-volatile solute increases?
It increases.
It decreases.
It remains constant.
It fluctuates.
As the concentration of a non-volatile solute increases, the vapor pressure of the solution decreases according to Raoult's Law.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
1 item
Q
Q: What happens to the vapor pressure of a solution as the concentration of a non-volatile solute increases?
Solution: As the concentration of a non-volatile solute increases, the vapor pressure of the solution decreases according to Raoult's Law.
Steps: 5
Step 1: Understand what vapor pressure is. Vapor pressure is the pressure exerted by the vapor of a liquid when it is in equilibrium with its liquid phase.
Step 2: Know what a non-volatile solute is. A non-volatile solute is a substance that does not easily evaporate and has little to no vapor pressure of its own.
Step 3: Recognize that when a non-volatile solute is added to a solvent, it occupies space at the surface of the liquid, reducing the number of solvent molecules that can escape into the vapor phase.
Step 4: Realize that as you increase the concentration of the non-volatile solute, more solvent molecules are blocked from escaping, leading to a decrease in vapor pressure.
Step 5: Apply Raoult's Law, which states that the vapor pressure of a solution is directly proportional to the mole fraction of the solvent. As the concentration of the solute increases, the mole fraction of the solvent decreases, resulting in lower vapor pressure.
