Water as Universal Solvent

Water is one of the best and most useful solvents. Water has a unique property of dissolving a large number of substances starting from solids such as common salt, sugar, to gases like oxygen, carbon dioxide.

As so many substances dissolve in water, it is called a universal solvent. This property of water is useful for plants to take their food materials and minerals from the soil. It helps to absorb food that we eat. Many chemical reactions also take place only in aqueous solution.