Compare the Difference Between Similar Terms

Difference Between

Home / Science & Nature / Science / Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry / Difference Between Dissociation and Solvation

Difference Between Dissociation and Solvation

June 23, 2020 Posted by Madhu

The key difference between dissociation and solvation is that dissociation is the breakdown of a substance into the atoms or ions from which the substance is made of whereas solvation is the dissolution of a substance in a solvent due to the attraction forces between the solvent molecules and the components of the substance.

Dissociation and solvation are often found in analytical chemistry and in inorganic chemistry, regarding the breakdown of chemical substances upon different interactions between atoms and ions in a substance.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Dissociation
3. What is Solvation
4. Side by Side Comparison – Dissociation vs Solvation in Tabular Form
5. Summary

What is Dissociation?

The term dissociation refers to the breakdown or split of a compound into smaller particles. The dissociation process forms products that are either electrically charged or neutral. That means; the products of dissociation can be either ionic or non-ionic. However, this does not involve the gain or loss of electrons by the atoms.

Key Difference - Dissociation vs Solvation

Figure 01: Dissociation of BrOH Molecule

In contrast to the process of ionization, dissociation involves the separation of ions that already existed in a compound. Sometimes, dissociation may also produce neutral particles—for example, the breakdown of N2O4 results in the production of two molecules of NO2. Dissociation processes are reversible most of the times. That means, separated ions can be re-arranged to produce the previous compound. For example, as mentioned above, the dissolving of NaCl is a dissociation process, and it produces two charged particles. But, solid NaCl can be obtained again with given proper conditions, which proves that dissociation is reversible. Unlike ionization, dissociation takes place in ionic compounds.

What is Solvation?

Solvation is the dissolution of a substance in a particular solvent. The solvation occurs due to the attraction force between molecules of the solvent and the solute molecules. Usually, the attraction forces involved in this process are ion-dipole bonds and hydrogen bonding attractions. These attraction forces cause the dissolution of a solute in a solvent.

Difference Between Dissociation and Solvation

Figure 02: Solvation of Sodium Chloride Ionic Compound in Water

The ion-dipole interactions can be found between ionic compounds and polar solvents. E.g. water is a polar solvent. When sodium chloride is added to water, the polar water molecules attract the sodium ions and chloride ions separately, which causes the sodium and chloride ions to break apart. This results in the breakdown of the sodium chloride ionic compound.

What is the Difference Between Dissociation and Solvation?

Dissociation and solvation are terms that describe how different substances break into small pieces or atoms/ion depending on the interactions. The key difference between dissociation and solvation is that dissociation is the breakdown of a substance into the atoms or ions from which the substance is made of whereas solvation is the dissolution of a substance in a solvent due to the attraction forces between solvent molecules and the components of the substance.

Below tabulation shows more differences between dissociation and solvation.

Difference Between Dissociation and Solvation in Tabular Form

Summary – Dissociation vs Solvation

The key difference between dissociation and solvation is that dissociation is the breakdown of a substance into the atoms or ions from which the substance is made of whereas solvation is the dissolution of a substance in a solvent due to the attraction forces between solvent molecules and the components of the substance.

Reference:

1. “Solutions, Solvation, and Dissociation.” Chemistry LibreTexts, Libretexts, 5 June 2019, Available here.
2. “Solvation and Dissociation.” Socratic.org, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “BrOH acid dissociation” By Achow801 – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “214 Dissociation of Sodium Chloride in Water-01” By OpenStax College – Anatomy & Physiology, Connexions Web site, Jun 19, 2013 (CC BY 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia

Related posts:

Difference Between Rayleigh and Raman ScatteringDifference Between Rayleigh and Raman Scattering Difference Between Sublime and SublimateDifference Between Sublime and Sublimate Difference Between Acidity and Alkalinity of WaterDifference Between Acidity and Alkalinity of Water Difference Between Extraction and IsolationDifference Between Extraction and Isolation Difference Between Flocculation and DeflocculationDifference Between Flocculation and Deflocculation

Filed Under: Analytical Chemistry

About the Author: Madhu

Madhu is a graduate in Biological Sciences with BSc (Honours) Degree and currently persuing a Masters Degree in Industrial and Environmental Chemistry. With a mind rooted firmly to basic principals of chemistry and passion for ever evolving field of industrial chemistry, she is keenly interested to be a true companion for those who seek knowledge in the subject of chemistry.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Request Article

Featured Posts

Difference Between Coronavirus and Cold Symptoms

Difference Between Coronavirus and Cold Symptoms

Difference Between Coronavirus and SARS

Difference Between Coronavirus and SARS

Difference Between Coronavirus and Influenza

Difference Between Coronavirus and Influenza

Difference Between Coronavirus and Covid 19

Difference Between Coronavirus and Covid 19

You May Like

Difference Between Epithelial and Endothelial Cells

Difference Between Classification and Prediction

Difference Between Classification and Prediction

Difference Between Prosthetic Group and Coenzyme

Difference Between Prosthetic Group and Coenzyme

Difference Between Interpol and Europol

Difference Between Marginal Costing and Differential Costing

Difference Between Marginal Costing and Differential Costing

Latest Posts

  • What is the Difference Between Avobenzone and Benzene
  • What is the Difference Between Tight Junction and Adherens Junction
  • What is the Difference Between Hemorrhagic Stroke and Aneurysm
  • What is the Difference Between Zakat and Sadaqah
  • What is the Difference Between Papules and Pustules
  • What is the Difference Between Ubiquinol and CoQ10
  • Home
  • Vacancies
  • About
  • Request Article
  • Contact Us

Copyright © 2010-2018 Difference Between. All rights reserved. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy: Legal.