Enthalpy of Hydration (Oxford AQA International A Level Chemistry)

Revision Note

Philippa Platt

Written by: Philippa Platt

Reviewed by: Stewart Hird

Enthalpy of Hydration Calculations

Enthalpy of solution

  • The standard enthalpy change of solution (ΔHsol) is the enthalpy change when one mole of an ionic substance dissolves in sufficient water to form an infinitely dilute solution

  • The symbol (aq) is used to show that the solid is dissolved in sufficient water

    • For example, the enthalpy changes of solution for potassium chloride are described by the following equations:

KCl (s) + aq → KCl (aq)

OR

KCl (s) + aq → K+(aq) + Cl-(aq)

  • ΔHsol can be exothermic (negative) or endothermic (positive)

Enthalpy of hydration

  • The standard enthalpy change of hydration (ΔHhyd) is the enthalpy change when 1 mole of a specified gaseous ion dissolves in sufficient water to form an infinitely dilute solution

    • For example, the enthalpy change of hydration for magnesium ions is described by the following equation:

Mg2+(g) + aq → Mg2+(aq)

  • Hydration enthalpies are the measure of the energy that is released when there is an attraction formed between the ions and water molecules

  • Hydration enthalpies are exothermic

  • When an ionic solid dissolves in water, positive and negative ions are formed

  • Water is a polar molecule with a δ- oxygen (O) atom and δ+ hydrogen (H) atoms which will form ion-dipole attractions with the ions present in the solution

  • The oxygen atom in water will be attracted to the positive ions and the hydrogen atoms will be attracted to the negative ions

Hydration of cations and anions

Chemical Energetics - Ion-Dipole Bonds, downloadable AS & A Level Chemistry revision notes
The polar water molecules will form ion-dipole bonds with the ions in solution causing the ions to become hydrated
A diagram to show the general born-haber cycle for hydration
Born-Haber cycle

Enthalpy of solution = - lattice formation enthalpy + hydration enthalpy

OR

Enthalpy of solution = lattice dissociation enthalpy + hydration enthalpy

  • The hydration enthalpy is the sum of the hydration enthalpies of each ion

  • If there is more than one cation or anion, such as in MgCl2, then you must multiply by the appropriate coefficient for that ion

Calculations

  • Questions in this topic typically ask you to calculate the hydration enthalpy of one of the ions, given the lattice enthalpy, enthalpy of solution and hydration enthalpy of the other ion

  • This can be done by constructing an appropriate Hess's Law cycle to find the unknown energy value

  • The energy cycle above shows that there are two routes to go from the gaseous ions to the ions in an aqueous solution

Hess' Law style to calculate enthalpy of solution
Hess's Law cycle
  • According to Hess’s law, the enthalpy change for both routes is the same, such that:

ΔHsol = - ΔHlatt + ΔHhyd

ΔHhyd= ΔHlatt + ΔHsol

  • Each ion will have its own enthalpy change of hydration, ΔHhyd, which will need to be taken into account during calculations

    • The total ΔHhyd is found by adding the  ΔHhyd values of both anions and cations together

Worked Example

Using the following data, calculate the enthalpy of solution, ΔHsol for NaCl.

ΔHlatt[NaCl] = -774 kJ mol-1

ΔHhyd[Na+] = -406 kJ mol-1

ΔHhyd[Cl-] = -364 kJ mol-1

Answer:

Step 1: Draw the energy cycle

Hess' Law to calculate enthalpy of solution for NaCl

Step 2: Substitute the values to find ΔHsol [NaCl]

ΔHsol = - ΔHlatt + ΔHhyd

ΔHsol[NaCl]  = -(-774) + (-406) + (-364) = +4 kJ mol-1

Alternative diagram

NaCl hydration born-haber cycle

Worked Example

Construct an energy cycle to calculate the ΔHhydof magnesium ions in magnesium chloride, given the following data:

ΔHlatt[MgCl2] = -2592 kJ mol-1

ΔHsol[MgCl2] = -55 kJ mol-1

ΔHhyd[Cl-] = -364 kJ mol-1

Answer:

Step 1: Draw an energy cycle:

Worked example to find enthalpy of hydration of Mg2+ ion

Step 2: Substitute the values to find ΔHhyd [Mg2+]

ΔHsol = - ΔHlatt + ΔHhyd

ΔHhyd= ΔHlatt + ΔHsol

ΔHhyd[Mg2+]  = (-2592) + (-55) - (2 x -364) = -1921 kJ mol-1

Alternative diagram

MgCl2 born haber

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Philippa Platt

Author: Philippa Platt

Expertise: Chemistry

Philippa has worked as a GCSE and A level chemistry teacher and tutor for over thirteen years. She studied chemistry and sport science at Loughborough University graduating in 2007 having also completed her PGCE in science. Throughout her time as a teacher she was incharge of a boarding house for five years and coached many teams in a variety of sports. When not producing resources with the chemistry team, Philippa enjoys being active outside with her young family and is a very keen gardener

Stewart Hird

Author: Stewart Hird

Expertise: Chemistry Lead

Stewart has been an enthusiastic GCSE, IGCSE, A Level and IB teacher for more than 30 years in the UK as well as overseas, and has also been an examiner for IB and A Level. As a long-standing Head of Science, Stewart brings a wealth of experience to creating Topic Questions and revision materials for Save My Exams. Stewart specialises in Chemistry, but has also taught Physics and Environmental Systems and Societies.