Why is a solution unstable?
Owing to the presence of the solute in a supersaturated solution in a concentration greater than the concentration of equilibrium, super-saturated solutions are unstable.
Supersaturation is a state of a solution that contains more of the dissolved material that could be dissolved by the solvent under normal circumstances. Hence at normal temperatures, these solutions are unstable.
If the difference between the solutions approaches zero as x increases, the solution is called asymptotically stable. If a solution does not have either of these properties, it is called unstable.
In terms of the solution of a differential equation, a function f(x) is said to be stable if any other solution of the equation that starts out sufficiently close to it when x = 0 remains close to it for succeeding values of x.
It is very stable. The particles of solute present in a solution do not separate out on keeping.
Atoms found in nature are either stable or unstable. An atom is stable if the forces among the particles that makeup the nucleus are balanced. An atom is unstable (radioactive) if these forces are unbalanced; if the nucleus has an excess of internal energy.
If nearby solutions to the equilibrium point are all converging towards it, then we have a stable equilibrium point, if the nearby solutions are all diverging then we have an unstable equilibrium point.
All supersaturated solutions are unstable. A supersaturated solution contains more solute at a given temperature than is needed to form a saturated solution. Increased temperature usually increases the solubility of solids in liquids.
To be unstable is to lack stability, meaning things could change without warning, like an unstable bookshelf that is likely to fall down. If you are unstable emotionally, you might be ecstatically happy one minute and horribly depressed and angry the next. The adjective unstable means the opposite of stable.
Scientific definitions for unstable
unstable. [ ŭn-stā′bəl ] Liable to undergo spontaneous decay into some other form. For example, the nucleus of uranium 238 atom is unstable and changes by radioactive decay into the nucleus of thorium 234, a lighter element.
What causes unstable element?
When an atom has extra neutrons or protons, it causes the element to become unstable.
The solute particles cannot be separated from the mixture by the process of filtration. The solute particles do not settle down when left undisturbed, that is, a solution is stable.
In materials science, a chemical substance is said to be stable if it is not particularly reactive in the environment or during normal use, and retains its useful properties on the timescale of its expected usefulness.
stable. [ stā′bəl ] Not susceptible to a process of decay, such as radioactivity. For example, the most common isotope of carbon, carbon 12, is stable. Protons and photons are examples of stable subatomic particles.
The stability of atoms depends on whether or not their outer-most shell is filled with electrons. If the outer shell is filled, the atom is stable. Atoms with unfilled outer shells are unstable, and will usually form chemical bonds with other atoms to achieve stability.
When a system is unstable, the output of the system may be infinite even though the input to the system was finite. This causes a number of practical problems. For instance, a robot arm controller that is unstable may cause the robot to move dangerously.
If a system in equilibrium is disturbed slightly, then if it is stable it tends to return to or oscillate about its original equilibrium state. An unstable system tends to continue to move away from its original equilibrium state when perturbed from it.
If a system does not satisfy the BIBO stability condition, the system is called the unstable system. Therefore, for a bounded input, it is not necessary that the unstable system produces a bounded output. Thus, we can say that a system is unstable even if one bounded input generates an unbounded output.
Formal definition
An equilibrium point is hyperbolic if none of the eigenvalues have zero real part. If all eigenvalues have negative real parts, the point is stable. If at least one has a positive real part, the point is unstable.
On the other hand, an unstable mixture is defined as a mixture in which solute particles settle or coagulate into the solvent. For example, mud in water is an unstable mixture.
Which of the following is unstable chemistry?
Solution : ( c) Neutrons are unstable and having mean life time of `32 sec`, decaying by emitting an electron and antineutrino to become proton.
Like a supercooled or superheated liquid, a supersaturated solution is unstable. Consequently, adding a small particle of the solute, a seed crystal, will usually cause the excess solute to rapidly precipitate or crystallize, sometimes with spectacular results.
Hence, the most unstable particle is the neutron with a half-life of only 106 minutes.
On the periodic table, most elements have at least one stable form. But others have only unstable forms, all of which decay by emitting radiation and transforming into different elements until becoming one that's stable.
They are unstable because they have too much energy, too many protons, or an unstable ratio of protons to neutrons. For example, all elements with more than 83 protons—such as uranium, radium, and polonium—have unstable nuclei. They are called radioactive elements.