Essential Properties of Water

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Biochemistry › Essential Properties of Water

Questions 1 - 10
1

What percentage of the human body is composed of interstitial water?

15%

5%

65%

60%

90%

Explanation

Interstitial water is the fluid on the outside of cells, and surrounds the cells of the human body. While estimates vary, the best answer is that 15% of the entire human body is composed of interstitial water. Overall, about 60% of the body (42L) is composed of water. Additionally, about two-thirds of the total body water is intracellular water. Finally, about 5% of the entire body is composed of plasma.

Remember that these percentages are estimates, and vary by individual. Sex and muscle mass are two factors that can significantly alter these estimates.

2

Which of the following statements about water is incorrect?

Because of hydrogen bonding, water has a low heat of vaporization.

Water has a tetrahedral structure when considering lone pairs and a bent molecular structure when not considering lone pairs.

Water has the potential to form a maximum of 4 hydrogen bonds.

Ice is a hexagonally packed network of water molecules and is less dense than water.

Explanation

Because of hydrogen bonding, water has a low high heat of vaporization. In other words, it takes more energy to free up water molecules from a hydrogen-bonded liquid state to a gaseous state.

3

Overall, water is a neutral molecule. However, it is polar due to electronegativity differences between oxygen and hydrogen. Which of the following could possibly be the partial positive and partial negative charges on a hydrogen and an oxygen in water, respectively?

Explanation

Oxygen is a more electronegative atom than hydrogen, and therefore attracts electrons within the molecule more strongly than hydrogen. Because electrons are negatively charged, oxygen must therefore contain a partial negative charge, while hydrogen must contain a partial positive charge.

Because water is neutral, the overall charge should add up to 0. However, there are two hydrogens in water, compared to one oxygen. Two positive charges of will cancel out a single negative charge of .

4

Why is water polar?

All of these

Electrons are distributed asymmetrically in the molecule

Oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen

Hydrogen atoms are arranged on one "side" of the molecule

Explanation

Water is polar for all of these reasons. First, oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen. This means that oxygen attracts electrons more strongly than hydrogen does. Thus, in the hydrogen-oxygen bond of water, the electrons will be distributed asymmetrically--they will be oriented more towards oxygen than hydrogen. The molecular geometry of the water molecule (bent) results from oxygen containing a steric number of four with two lone pairs, thus the molecule has a slightly positive end and a slightly negative end.

5

A dialysis bag containing pure water is placed in a beaker containing a 1 molar glucose in water. The pore size of the dialysis bag is only large enough to allow water to pass through it. What will be the net flow of water?

Water will flow out of the dialysis bag into the glucose solution

Water will flow from the glucose solution into the dialysis bag

There will be no movement of water

Water will flow both directions at equal rates

Glucose will flow from the glucose solution into the dialysis bag

Explanation

Osmosis states that a solvent will move from a region of high concentration to a region of relatively lower concentration. In this case the solvent is water. The concentration of water inside the dialysis bag is higher than the concentration of water in the beaker because this water also contains 1 molar glucose. Therefore the water in the dialysis bag will flow out into the beaker to bring the concentration of water in both spaces toward equilibrium

6

The primary reason that water is liquid at room temperature is because of __________.

Cohesion

Adhesion

Surface tension

High density

Explanation

Cohesion is defined as attraction between the same type of molecule. Water attracts other water molecules because it is polar and has partial charges. This attraction means that water has strong intermolecular forces even at room temperature and more thermal energy is required to vaporize it. Adhesion involves the attraction of a substance with a container or surface.

7

Which of the following molecules is amphipathic?

Palmitic acid

Benzene

Calcium chloride

Acetic acid

Explanation

An amphipathic molecule is one which contains both hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions. Benzene is made up of six carbon atoms joined together in a ring, with one hydrogen atom attached to each carbon (). This makes it a hydrocarbon, meaning that benzene is entirely hydrophobic. It does not have any hydrophilic regions and thus cannot be amphipathic.

Calcium chloride () is an ionic compound. This means that it is hydrophilic, not amphipathic. Acetic acid () is an interesting compound because it consists of a methyl group and a carboxylic acid. The carboxylic acid is hydrophilic. The methyl group, consisting of a carbon and three hydrogen atoms, is hydrophobic, but this group is too small to make the entire compound amphipathic. Thus, acetic acid is not amphipathic.

Lastly, palmitic acid () is definitely an amphipathic molecule. The carboxylic acid portion is hydrophilic, and the hydrocarbon chain is very long, making up the hydrophobic region.

8

Which substance do you expect to be most soluble in water?

Ammonia

Methane

Carbon dioxide

Nitrogen

Carbon trioxide

Explanation

Ammonia, NH3, will be the most soluble in water simply because polar substances dissolve in polar solvents. This follows the principle that "like dissolves like." Ammonia and water are both polar due to the presence of lone pairs of electrons combined with a lack of geometrical symmetry (water is bent and ammonia is trigonal pyramidal).

Carbon dioxide and nitrogen are linear, negating any potential polarity. Methane is tetrahedral, and lacks any polarized bonds. Carbon trioxide is tigonal planar, negating polar interactions due to symmetry.

9

Which of the following polymers is not formed by condensation?

Polystyrene

Polysaccharides

Proteins

Nucleic acids

Nylon

Explanation

The important point here is that biological polymers are basically all condensation polymers. In the case of proteins, polysaccharides (carbohydrates), and nucleic acids (like DNA and RNA), synthesis occurs via a loss of a water molecule. Non-biological molecules can also be formed via condensation, such as nylon, which also often has water as its by-product. Polystyrene is an addition polymer; upon formation, monomers do not lose any molecules. Bonds are only rearranged. Although it may seem counterintuitive, the fact is that in nature, polymers do not typically form this way.

10

What is true about the solubility of electrolytes in water?

They readily dissolve in water

They are all insoluble in water

No reactions can occur between aqueous electrolytes

They are usually only sparingly soluble in water

They often form super-saturated aqueous solutions

Explanation

Electrolytes readily dissolve and ionize in water. The term "electrolyte" refers to a molecule that will produce ions in solution, and can be synonymous with "salt" in certain contexts, as well as acidic and basic compounds.

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