What term describes a compound that conducts electricity when dissolved in water?

What term describes a compound that conducts electricity when dissolved in water?

• A. Covalent compound
• B. Polar covalent compound
• C. Metallic compound
• D. Ionic compound

Answer: (D)

Electrical conduction in a solution happens when there are mobile charged particles to carry the current. Ionic compounds do exactly this: they dissociate into positive and negative ions when dissolved in water, producing species like Na+ and Cl− that can move freely and transport charge. This movement of ions makes the solution able to conduct electricity. In contrast, most covalent compounds don’t form ions in solution, so they don’t typically conduct electricity; metallic compounds conduct electricity as solids because of delocalized electrons, not as dissolved species. So the term for a compound that conducts electricity when dissolved in water is an ionic compound, since it produces ions in solution that enable conduction.

Electrical conduction in a solution happens when there are mobile charged particles to carry the current. Ionic compounds do exactly this: they dissociate into positive and negative ions when dissolved in water, producing species like Na+ and Cl− that can move freely and transport charge. This movement of ions makes the solution able to conduct electricity. In contrast, most covalent compounds don’t form ions in solution, so they don’t typically conduct electricity; metallic compounds conduct electricity as solids because of delocalized electrons, not as dissolved species. So the term for a compound that conducts electricity when dissolved in water is an ionic compound, since it produces ions in solution that enable conduction.