Upon completion of this module, you should be able to understand the concept of solutions and electrolytes and understand the dissociation of acids and bases. Aqueous is the term used to describe a solution in which the solvent is water.
When a chemical species has been dissolved in water, (aq) is written after the chemical name or symbol. For example, when solid sodium chloride, NaCl, is dissolved in water, it dissociates into ions Na+ (aq) and Cl- (aq). The (aq) after each ion indicates it is dissolved in water.