Salt (chemistry) In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that can result from the neutralization reaction of an acid

and a base. They are composed of cations (positively charged ions) and anions (negative ions) so that the product is electrically neutral (without a net charge). These component ions can be inorganic such as chloride (Cl), as well as organic such as acetate (CH3COO) and monatomic ions such as fluoride (F), as well as polyatomic ions such as sulfate (SO42).

There are several varieties of salts. Salts that hydrolyze to produce hydroxide ions when dissolved in water are basic saltsand salts that hydrolyze to producehydronium ions in water are acid salts. Neutral salts are those that are neither acid nor basic salts.Zwitterions contain an anionic center and a cationic center in the same molecule but are not considered to be salts. Examples include amino acids, many metabolites, peptides and proteins.

Molten salts and solutions containing dissolved salts (e.g. sodium chloride in water) are called electrolytes, as they are able to conduct electricity. As observed in the cytoplasm of cells, in blood, urine, plant saps and mineral waters, mixtures of many different ions in solution usually do not form defined salts after evaporation of the water. Therefore, their salt content is given for the respective ions.

Properties COLOR Salts can appear to be clear and transparent (sodium chloride), opaque, and even metallic and lustrous (iron disulfide). In many cases the apparent opacity or transparency are only related to the difference in size of the individual monocrystals. Since light reflects from the grain boundaries (boundaries between crystallites), larger crystals tend to be transparent, while polycrystalline aggregates look like white powders. Of course, some salts are opaque.

Salts exist in many different colors, e.g.

yellow (sodium chromate), orange (potassium dichromate), red (mercury sulfide),

mauve (cobalt chloride hexahydrate), blue (copper sulfate pentahydrate, ferric hexacyanoferrate), purple (potassium permanganate), green (nickel chloride hexahydrate), white (sodium chloride), and black (manganese dioxide). Most minerals and inorganic pigments as well as many synthetic organic dyes are salts. The color of the specific salt is due to the presence of unpaired electrons in the d-orbital of transition elements.

TASTE Different salts can elicit all five basic tastes, e.g., salty (sodium chloride), sweet (lead diacetate, which will cause lead poisoning if ingested), sour (potassium bitartrate), bitter (magnesium sulfate), and umami or savory (monosodium glutamate).

ODOR Salts of strong acids

Homogeneous (chemistry) A substance that is uniform in composition is a definition of homogeneous (IPA: /hm dns, ho modi nis/) in Chemistry. This is in contrast to a substance that is heterogeneous. The definition of homogeneous strongly depends on the context used. In Chemistry, a homogeneous suspension of material means that when dividing the volume in half, the same amount of material is suspended in both halves of the substance. However, it might be possible to see the particles under a microscope. In Chemistry, another homogeneous substance is air. It is equally suspended, and the particles and gases and liquids cannot be analyzed separately or pulled apart.

Homogeneity of mixtures In Chemistry, some mixtures are homogeneous. In other words, mixtures have the same proportions throughout a given sample or multiple samples of different proportion to create a consistent mixture. However, two homogeneous mixtures of the same pair of substances may differ widely from each other

and can be homogenized to make a constant. Mixtures can be characterized by being separable by mechanical means e.g. heat, filtration, gravitational sorting, etc.

SOLUTIONS A solution is a special type of homogeneous mixture. Solutions are homogeneous because, the ratio of solute to solvent remains the same throughout the solution even if homogenized with multiple sources, and stable because, the solute will not settle out, no matter how long the solution sits, and it cannot be removed by a filter or a centrifuge. This type of mixture is very stable, i.e., its particles do not settle, or separate. As homogeneous mixture, a solution has one phase (liquid) although the solute and solvent can vary: for example, salt water. In chemistry, a mixture is a substance containing two or more elements or compounds that are not chemically bound to each other but retain their own chemical and physical identities; - a substance which has two or more constituent chemical substances. Mixtures, in the broader sense, are two or more substances physically in the same place, but these are not chemically combined, and therefore ratios are not necessarily considered.