Colligative Properties

Question 1

what is osmosis

Answer 1

Osmosis is the movement of water across a semipermeable membrane from an area of lower solute concentration to an area of higher solute concentration.

Question 2

Why is osmosis important in biological systems?

Answer 2

Osmosis is crucial because biological membranes are semipermeable, allowing for the regulation of water and solute balance in cells and tissues.

Question 3

What is blood osmolarity and its normal range?

Answer 3

Blood osmolarity is a colligative property and is tightly regulated in the body, with normal values ranging from 275 to 295 mOsm/kg (mmol/kg).

Question 4

Define osmole (OsM).

Answer 4

An osmole (OsM) is defined as one mole of a dissolved and dissociated substance in water, representing the number of particles in solution.

Question 5

How does the dissociation of NaCl affect its osmolarity?

Answer 5

One mole of NaCl dissociates into two ions (Na+ and Cl-), so it corresponds to 2 OsM in solution, while 1 mole of monosaccharides like glucose corresponds to 1 OsM.

Question 6

What factors do colligative properties depend on?

Answer 6

Colligative properties depend on the concentration of dissolved solutes and ions, but not on the molecular size or charge of the solutes.

Question 7

List some colligative properties of solutions.

Answer 7

Colligative properties include osmotic pressure, vapor pressure lowering, boiling point elevation, and freezing point depression.