Non-electrolytes are substances that do not break down into ions when placed in solution, unlike electrolytes. Non-electrolytes consist of covalently bonded molecules and do not conduct electricity. Sugar is an example of a non-electrolyte, while salt is an electrolyte that dissociates into ions in solution and conducts electricity. Non-electrolytes have low melting and boiling points and are not crystalline structures.
A non-electrolyte is a term used in chemistry to refer to a substance that does not break down or dissociate into ions when placed in solution. Nonelectrolytes usually consist of molecules that are covalently bonded and may or may not dissolve in water. Unlike electrolytes, non-electrolytes do not conduct electricity when in solution. Sugar, C12H22O11, is an example of a non-electrolyte.
Ions are positively or negatively charged atoms. A neutral, uncharged atom has the same number of protons, which are positively charged particles, and electrons, which are negatively charged particles. When atoms form a molecule and are bonded together by an ionic bond, one or more electrons in one atom drift into the orbit of another atom, thus creating an imbalance in the proton-to-electron ratio in each atom. When atoms dissociate in a solution, one of the new atoms will have a positive charge, while the other will have a negative charge. These are electrolytes.
Conversely, atoms that form covalent bonds to make molecules share electrons between atoms. Since atoms are shared rather than transferred, the ratio of protons to electrons remains the same even after the bond is split. However, covalent bonds are much stronger than ionic bonds, so molecules tend to stick together in a solution. These are non-electrolytes.
Sugar and salt are good examples of a non-electrolyte versus an electrolyte. Sugar is a non-electrolyte. When placed in water, sugar grains, consisting of many C12H22O11 molecules, dissolve. In covalent bonds, individual molecules do not have a strong attraction to other molecules in a substance, but the atoms within individual molecules have a strong attraction to other atoms in that molecule. Therefore, although the bonds between the molecules break, the molecules themselves remain intact.
On the other hand, when salt, an electrolyte, is placed in water, the sodium (Na) and chloride (Cl) atoms dissociate. Then, as the grain of salt dissolves, atoms rather than molecules are left floating in the solution. Since NaCl is ionically bonded, the sodium atom loses an electron and the chloride atom gains the electron during the initial bond. Therefore, when the bond is split, the chloride is left with one more electron than the proton and the sodium with one less. Instead of having sodium and chloride atoms floating in a solution, sodium and chloride ions, Na+ and Cl-, are contained in the solution.
Because electrolytes have charges when in solution, they conduct electricity well. Since non-electrolytes have no charge, they do not conduct electricity. Also, due to the nature of covalent bonds, nonelectrolytes tend to have low melting and boiling points and are not crystalline structures.
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