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  • Boiling Point Elevation: Which Solute Has the Greatest Effect?
    The solute that raises the boiling point of water the most is the one with the highest molality and the highest van't Hoff factor (i).

    Here's why:

    * Molality: Molality is the number of moles of solute per kilogram of solvent. The more solute you dissolve, the greater the effect on the boiling point.

    * van't Hoff factor (i): This factor represents the number of particles a solute dissociates into when dissolved in a solvent. For example:

    * NaCl: Dissociates into Na+ and Cl- ions, so i = 2.

    * Sugar (C12H22O11): Does not dissociate, so i = 1.

    * CaCl2: Dissociates into Ca2+ and 2Cl- ions, so i = 3.

    Therefore, a solution with a high molality of a solute that dissociates into many particles (high i) will have the largest increase in boiling point.

    Example: A 1 molal solution of CaCl2 would raise the boiling point of water more than a 1 molal solution of NaCl, because CaCl2 dissociates into more particles (i=3) compared to NaCl (i=2).

    Note: The specific boiling point elevation is determined by the molality and the molal boiling point elevation constant (Kb) of the solvent.

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