Water Flashcards
1
Q
Name the 6 properties of water.
A
- Cohesive
- High latent heat of vapourisation
- High specific heat capacity
- Metabolite
- Solvent
- Polar
2
Q
Why is water polar?
A
- Water is made out of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, the opposite charges of hydrogen and oxygen cause a dipole
- This means that the negative pole of one water molecule is attracted to the positive pole of another, causing hydrogen bonding
3
Q
Why does water have a high specific heat capacity?
A
- Due to water molecules sticking together, it takes more energy to separate them
- This means more energy is used to separate water molecules than to raise the temp of water
- This allows water to minimise temperature fluctuations and buffer heat changes
4
Q
Why does water have a high latent heat of vapourisation?
A
- Due to hydrogen bonding, a lot of energy is required to break bonds in water
- This means a lot of energy is released when water is evaporated, giving water a cooling effect
5
Q
Why is water cohesive?
A
- water molecules stick together as they are polar and attract each other
- This helps water flow, supporting transpiration streams and creating high surface tension for insects such as pond skaters
6
Q
Why is water an important metabolite?
A
- water is important in condensation and hydrolysis reactions
7
Q
Why is water a good solvent?
A
- Water polarity makes it a good solvent for ionic compounds
- water also readily dissolves gasses like CO2 and O2 and waste such as ammonia a nd urea
