{{short description|Solvent containing an H+ ion}} {{redirect|Protic|the surname|Protić}}

In chemistry, a '''protic solvent''' is a solvent that has a hydrogen atom bound to an oxygen (as in a hydroxyl group {{chem2|\sOH}}), a nitrogen (as in an amine group {{chem2|\sNH2}} or {{chem2|\sNH\s}}), or fluoride (as in hydrogen fluoride). In general terms, any solvent that contains a labile {{chem2|H+}} is called a protic solvent. The molecules of such solvents readily donate protons ({{chem2|H+}}) to solutes, often via hydrogen bonding. Water is the most common protic solvent. Conversely, polar aprotic solvents cannot donate protons but still have the ability to dissolve many salts.<ref>{{Ullmann|doi=10.1002/14356007.a24_437|title = Solvents|title|year = 2000|last1 = Stoye|first1 = Dieter|isbn = 3527306730}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|chapter=Laboratory Solvent Solvents and Other Liquid Reagents|title=CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 102nd Edition (Internet Version 2021)|editor=John R. Rumble|publisher=CRC Press/Taylor & Francis|location=Boca Raton, FL, USA}}</ref>

Methods for purification of common solvents are available.<ref>{{cite book|title=Purification of Laboratory Chemicals, 8th Edition|year=2017|author=W. L. F. Armarego |isbn=9780128054567|publisher=Elsevier}}</ref>

<!-- Here is a table of data; skip past it to edit the text. --> {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;" ! Solvent ! Chemical formula ! Boiling point ! Dielectric constant ! Density ! Dipole moment (D)

<!-- ### Polar protic solvents ### --> |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | colspan="6" | '''Polar protic solvents''' |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | formic acid | {{chem2|HCO2H}} | 101&nbsp;°C | 58 | 1.21 g/mL | 1.41 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | ''n''-butanol | {{chem2|CH3CH2CH2CH2OH}} | 118&nbsp;°C | 18 | 0.810 g/mL | 1.63 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | isopropanol (IPA) | {{chem2|(CH3)2CH(OH)}} | 82&nbsp;°C | 18 | 0.785 g/mL | 1.66 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | nitromethane{{efn| Although the hydrogen is bonded to the carbon, the carbon is next to a positively charged nitrogen and it is double bonded to an oxygen}} | {{chem2|CH3NO2}} | 101°C | 35.87 | 1.1371 g/mL | 3.56 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | ethanol (EtOH) | {{chem2|CH3CH2OH}} | 79&nbsp;°C | 24.55 | 0.789 g/mL | 1.69 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | methanol (MeOH) | {{chem2|CH3OH}} | 65&nbsp;°C | 33 | 0.791 g/mL | 1.70 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | Acetic acid (AcOH) | {{chem2|CH3CO2H}} | 118&nbsp;°C | 6.2 | 1.049 g/mL | 1.74 D |- bgcolor="#FFCCCC" | Water | {{chem2|H2O}} | 100&nbsp;°C | 80 | 1.000 g/mL | 1.85 D |} {| |- |}

== See also == * Autoprotolysis

== Notes == {{notelist}}

== References == {{reflist}}

{{Chemical solutions}}

Category:Solvents