Protic solvent

In chemistry, a protic solvent is a solvent that has a hydrogen atom bound to an oxygen (as in a hydroxyl group), a nitrogen (as in an amine group) or a fluorine (as in hydrogen fluoride). In general terms, any solvent that contains a labile H+ is called a protic solvent. The molecules of such solvents readily donate protons (H+) to reagents. Conversely, aprotic solvents cannot donate hydrogen. In chemistry, a protic solvent is a solvent that has a hydrogen atom bound to an oxygen (as in a hydroxyl group), a nitrogen (as in an amine group) or a fluorine (as in hydrogen fluoride). In general terms, any solvent that contains a labile H+ is called a protic solvent. The molecules of such solvents readily donate protons (H+) to reagents. Conversely, aprotic solvents cannot donate hydrogen. Polar protic solvents are often used to dissolve salts. In general, these solvents have high dielectric constants and high polarity.