water Flashcards
describe water as a molecule
water is a dipolar molecule as the oxygen is slightly negative and the hydrogen is slightly positive this causes hydrogen bonds to form between different water molecules between the hydrogen and oxygen atoms
how is water a metabolite
-involved in many reactions like photosynthesis and hydrolysis
-important that the cytoplasm and plasma is made up of water
how is water a solvent
-many substances dissolve in water due to the fact water is dipolar
-this enables many essential substances can be transported easily around animals and plants in the xylem or blood
how does water have a high specific heat capacity
a lot of energy is required to raise the temperature of water this is because some of the heat energy is used to break the hydrogen bonds between water molecules
why is having a high specific heat capacity useful
temperature of water remains relatively stable even if the surrounding temperature fluctuates, this keeps internal temperatures constant so enzymes dont denature
how does water have a large latent heat of vaporisation
alot of energy is required to convert water from its liquid state to gaseous state as the hydrogen bonds between H and O have to be broken
how is having a high latent heat of vaporisation beneficial to organisims
water provides a cooling effect for example when we sweat the heat energy from our skin is used to evaporate the water which cools the organisim
how does water have strong cohesion
water molecules stick together by hydrogen bonds
how is water having strong cohesion beneficial
-water moves up the xylem in a continuous stream this is easier than drawing up individual molecules
-cohesion also provides surface tension to water this enables small organisms to live on the surface of the water