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Π = M R T

where R is the universal gas constant.

Calculation of osmotic pressure

What is the osmotic pressure (atm) of a 0.30 M solution of glucose in water that is used for intravenous infusion at body temperature, 37 °C?

Solution

We can find the osmotic pressure, Π , using the formula Π = MRT , where T is on the Kelvin scale (310 K) and the value of R is expressed in appropriate units (0.08206 L atm/mol K).

Π = M R T = 0.03 mol/L × 0.08206 L atm/mol K × 310 K = 7.6 atm

Check your learning

What is the osmotic pressure (atm) a solution with a volume of 0.750 L that contains 5.0 g of methanol, CH 3 OH, in water at 37 °C?

Answer:

5.3 atm

Got questions? Get instant answers now!

If a solution is placed in an apparatus like the one shown in [link] , applying pressure greater than the osmotic pressure of the solution reverses the osmosis and pushes solvent molecules from the solution into the pure solvent. This technique of reverse osmosis is used for large-scale desalination of seawater and on smaller scales to produce high-purity tap water for drinking.

The figure shows a U shaped tube with a semi permeable membrane placed at the base of the U. Pure solvent is present and indicated by small yellow spheres to the left of the membrane. To the right, a solution exists with larger blue spheres intermingled with some small yellow spheres. At the membrane, arrows point from four small yellow spheres to the left of the membrane. On the right side of the U, there is a disk that is the same width of the tube and appears to block it. The disk is at the same level as the solution. An arrow points down from the top of the tube to the disk and is labeled, “Pressure greater than Π subscript solution.”
Applying a pressure greater than the osmotic pressure of a solution will reverse osmosis. Solvent molecules from the solution are pushed into the pure solvent.

Reverse osmosis water purification

In the process of osmosis, diffusion serves to move water through a semipermeable membrane from a less concentrated solution to a more concentrated solution. Osmotic pressure is the amount of pressure that must be applied to the more concentrated solution to cause osmosis to stop. If greater pressure is applied, the water will go from the more concentrated solution to a less concentrated (more pure) solution. This is called reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis (RO) is used to purify water in many applications, from desalination plants in coastal cities, to water-purifying machines in grocery stores ( [link] ), and smaller reverse-osmosis household units. With a hand-operated pump, small RO units can be used in third-world countries, disaster areas, and in lifeboats. Our military forces have a variety of generator-operated RO units that can be transported in vehicles to remote locations.

This figure shows two photos of reverse osmosis systems. The first is a small system that appears easily portable. The second is larger and situated outdoors.
Reverse osmosis systems for purifying drinking water are shown here on (a) small and (b) large scales. (credit a: modification of work by Jerry Kirkhart; credit b: modification of work by Willard J. Lathrop)

Examples of osmosis are evident in many biological systems because cells are surrounded by semipermeable membranes. Carrots and celery that have become limp because they have lost water can be made crisp again by placing them in water. Water moves into the carrot or celery cells by osmosis. A cucumber placed in a concentrated salt solution loses water by osmosis and absorbs some salt to become a pickle. Osmosis can also affect animal cells. Solute concentrations are particularly important when solutions are injected into the body. Solutes in body cell fluids and blood serum give these solutions an osmotic pressure of approximately 7.7 atm. Solutions injected into the body must have the same osmotic pressure as blood serum; that is, they should be isotonic    with blood serum. If a less concentrated solution, a hypotonic    solution, is injected in sufficient quantity to dilute the blood serum, water from the diluted serum passes into the blood cells by osmosis, causing the cells to expand and rupture. This process is called hemolysis    . When a more concentrated solution, a hypertonic    solution, is injected, the cells lose water to the more concentrated solution, shrivel, and possibly die in a process called crenation    . These effects are illustrated in [link] .

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Source:  OpenStax, Ut austin - principles of chemistry. OpenStax CNX. Mar 31, 2016 Download for free at http://legacy.cnx.org/content/col11830/1.13
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