What Is a Solvent?

What Is a Solvent?Students in chemistry will learn a solvent definition to help them relate chemical and physical properties of different liquids. Sometimes students will ask, 'what is a solvent?'It is important to know how to define the term before you talk about it in class discussion. A general rule of thumb is that it is a substance that can hold water or one or more other liquids in a state of liquid. The use of a handbook or chemistry book will also help.Solvents have properties that vary. Each substance has a boiling point and specific gravity. The boiling point is the temperature at which a substance can be completely mixed with water. The specific gravity is the degree to which the liquid takes on the same weight as the solid it contains. This is the density of the material it is made up of.You may notice that solvents can be liquids that are at room temperature and are only a little less than freezing. Solvents are also materials that are at room temperature. But they are c older than water. At least one part of the substances that dissolve in water is actually solid, and at a very low temperature (such as about -12 degrees Celsius).Some solvents are not liquids at all. Other solvents are liquids or mixtures of liquids. A liquid at room temperature is a mixture of at least two liquids.Color is another property that relates to solvents. Some liquids that are solids when poured into a glass of water have a yellow color when the liquids evaporate.Dissolving of chemicals takes place during the process of boiling. In this process, there is a chemical reaction between the molecules of the chemicals and the surroundings. The main constituents of gases and vapors are carbon dioxide and water vapor.The solvent definition is not something to be taken lightly. It is important to know what it is when working with other people.