The term solubility indicates the fact that a substance can be dissolved, it is the ability of a certain substance to dissolve in another. Solute is the name given to the element to be dissolved, while solvent is the term used to call the element in which the solute is dissolved.
Likewise, the solubility can be expressed as a percentage of solute or in units such as moles per liter or grams per liter, all depending on the use that is going to be given. Furthermore, not all of these substances dissolve in the same solvents, since the composition of each of them will depend. For example, the element water is a solvent for salt but not for oil.
Each of the substances has an influence on its solubility capacity of others. It should be noted that the solubility depends both on the characteristics of the solute and the solvent and on the ambient pressure and the temperature at which the elements are found.
A factor that has a substantial impact on solubility is the presence of other dissolved species in the solvent. That is, if the liquid harbors metal complexes, the solubility is altered. In the same way, the excess or the defect of a common ion in the solution and the ionic strength also have an influence on the solubility.
With regard to the solubility conditions, it can be said that the diluted solution, that is, the amount of solute appears in a minimal proportion with respect to its volume, concentrated solution, is that with a significant amount of solute, unsaturated solution, is that that does not reach the maximum tolerable amount of solute, saturated solution is the one that has the largest possible amount of solute or supersaturated solution than the one that contains more solute than can exist.
Chemical equilibrium is nothing more than the process in which activities or concentrations interact in which they do not change over a period of time. Any type of relationship established between this and the dissolved and solid states of a compound is known as solubility equilibrium and that is why it is used to anticipate the solubility of a substance under certain conditions.
