There are two types of mixtures: heterogeneous and homogeneous. Heterogeneous mixtures contain substances that aren’t evenly distributed. Not every piece of that mixture will have the same substances in the same proportions. The mixture doesn’t have the same properties throughout. Soil is a heterogeneous mixture. The nutrients, rocks and small animals in the soil aren’t evenly distributed. The world’s oceans, containing different amounts of seaweed, seashells and plant and animal life, are also heterogeneous mixtures.

A homogeneous mixture or solution contains evenly mixed substances. The mixture has the same substances and same properties throughout. Solutions don’t have chemical formulas because atoms of its component substances aren’t chemically bonded. In a solution, a solvent dissolves another substance called the solute. Water, “the universal solvent,” can dissolve many solutes like sugar, coffee, tea or something else! Solutions don’t have to be mixtures of liquids. Metal alloys, like steel, are solutions of solids.

Which of the following best describes the difference between a heterogeneous mixture and a homogeneous mixture?

A
Heterogeneous mixtures cannot be physically separated, while homogeneous mixtures can be.

B
Heterogeneous mixtures are chemically bonded, while homogeneous mixtures are physically blended.

C
Heterogeneous mixtures are all made with soil, while homogeneous mixtures all contain the universal solvent water.

D
Heterogeneous mixtures aren’t evenly mixed, while homogeneous mixtures have the same properties throughout.