properties of water Flashcards
What are the properties of water that help organsims live?
Properties that help organisms live are; being a good solvent, cohesion and surface tension, density, liquid, high specific heat capacity and high latent heat of vaperisation and reactant
why is density important for an organims survival?
Ice is less dense then water so floats ontop of water and acts as an insulating layer so reduces heat loss when its cold which helps create a stable habitat for aquatic organims.
why is water being a liquid important for an organims survival?
water is a liquid at rtp so it can provide habitat for an organism, is a reaction medium for chemical reactions, a good transport medium and major component for tissues in living organisms.
why is water being a good solvent important for an organims survival?
water being a good solvent is important as it allows molecules and ions to move and react in water and allows transport of molecules and ions around the organism when dissolved in water.
why is water having cohesion and surface tension important for an organims survival?
this is good as columns of water in vascular tissue is brought up the xylem tissue from roots and some insects can walk on water.
why is water High specific heat capacity important for an organims survival?
it requires a lot of energy to overcome the many hydrogen bonds in water which is good as it provides a stable temp for enzyme-controlled reactions and allows a stable environment
why is water High latent heat of vaporisation important for an organims survival?
as it requires a lot of energy to turn water into a gas, it can cool of organisms, like sweat in humans.
