MACROMOLECULES

1.2 WATER

WATER:
The molecule that supports life
Water is the biological medium on Earth
All living organisms require water more than
any other substance
Most cells are surrounded by water, and cells
themselves are about 7095% water
The abundance of water is the main reason the
Earth is habitable.

WATER:
The molecule that supports life
Water is the only common substance to exist in
the natural environment in all 3 physical states
of matter:
Solid ice
Liquid
Gas vapour
Molecules of water participate in many chemical
reactions necessary to sustain life.
e.g.: hydrolysis of ATP to release energy

The Polarity of Water

Waters structure :
Shape like a wide V
2 hydrogen atoms joined to the oxygen atom
by single covalent bonds.
Water is a polar molecule.
The 2 ends of water molecule have
opposite charges.
The oxygen region has a partial negative charge (2-)
The hydrogens region have a partial positive charge (-)

The Polarity of Water

Significances features:
Polarity allows water molecules to
form hydrogen bonds with each
other.
Water is a versatile solvent due to
its polarity, which allows it to form
hydrogen bonds easily.
When an ionic compound is
dissolved in water, each ion is
surrounded by a sphere of water
molecules called a hydration
shell.

The Polarity of Water

Properties of Water

Four of waters properties that facilitate

an environment for life are:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Cohesive behavior
Moderation of temperature
Floating of ice on liquid water
Solvent of life

1. Cohesive behavior
Water molecules form hydrogen bonds with
other water molecules.
This makes water molecules tend to stick or
stay close together.
This is called COHESION.

ADHESION:
The attraction between different kind
molecules.
Example: between water and plant cell walls

of

1. Cohesive behavior
Cohesion helps:
a. The transport of water & dissolved
nutrients against gravity in plants.
As water evaporates from leaves,
the unbroken column of water held by
cohesive forces within the xylem vessels
are drawn upwards to the top of trees.

Adhesion of water to the xylem

wall;
will resists the downwards pull of
gravity.

1. Cohesive behavior
b. Surface tension,
a measure of how difficult it is to break the surface of a
liquid. Water has a greater surface tension than other
liquids.
This is due to an ordered arrangement of water
molecules, hydrogen-bonded to one another and to the
water molecules below.

1. Cohesive behavior
The high
surface tension
of water,
allows the
water strider to
walk on the
surface of a
pond.

2. Moderation of Temperature

High
specific
heat

High heat of
vaporization

Waters
properties:

2. Moderation of Temperature
Water moderates air temperature by:
- absorbing heat from warmer air and
- releasing the stored heat to cooler air.

2. Moderation of Temperature
a. High specific heat:

water can absorbed or release a relatively large

amount of heat with only a slight change in its own
temperature.

a. Water

b. Ethyl alcohol

2. Moderation of Temperature
Large bodies of water (e.g. oceans, seas & lakes) have a
thermally stable environment for aquatic organisms.
Water acts as thermal buffer & prevents large fluctuations in
body temperature of terrestrial organisms (enzymes to
function optimally ).

2. Moderation of Temperature
b. High heat of vaporization:
Heat a liquid must absorb for 1 g to be converted
to gas
As a liquid evaporates, its remaining surface
cools, a process called evaporative cooling
Evaporative cooling of water helps stabilize
temperatures in organisms surface and bodies
of water.

3. Floating of ice on liquid water

Waters property:
- Lower density of ice
As water cools,
the movement of water molecules slow down
the molecules are farther apart.

3. Floating of ice on liquid water

Water expands as it freezes
and the ice is less dense
than liquid water.
Water reaches its greatest
density at 4C.
If ice sank, all bodies of
water
would
eventually
freeze solid, making life
impossible on Earth

3. Floating of ice on liquid water

At 0C & below,

ice is formed & floats on the surface of water forming a

insulating layer.

This prevents water from freezing in lower depths.

Therefore aquatic organisms in ponds & lakes can survive in

liquid water during winter months.

4. Solvent of life
Waters property:
- Polar molecule
Water can also dissolve
compounds made of nonionic
polar molecules;
e.g. sugar (water-soluble)
Large polar molecules such as
proteins can dissolve in water
if they have ionic and polar
regions on their surface.

4. Solvent of life
Solution :
a liquid that is a homogeneous mixture of 2 or
more substances.
Solvent :
the dissolving agent of a solution.
Solute
A substance that is dissolved in a solution.
Aqueous solution
in which water is the solvent.

4. Solvent of life
A hydrophilic substance is one that has an
affinity for water.
Example: alcohol
A hydrophobic substance is one that does not
have an affinity for water.
Example: Oil molecules are hydrophobic
because they have relatively nonpolar
bonds.
A colloid is a stable suspension of fine particles
in a liquid