Osmosis topic?

Question

What is Osmotic Equilibrium

Answer 1

The concentration of the molecules in each side of a membrane etc are the same (there may be salt on one side and sugar on another but when the water is the same on both sides, it doesn't move across the membrane anymore reaching an equilibrium).

Answer 2

Body water is either inside or outside of cells but it can move in or out of cells as though the cell membrane were no barrier whatsoever. What drives water to move (or for that matter, to stay where it is) are the relative osmolalities, or concentrations of osmotic entities, inside versus outside the cell. An osmotic entity is any discrete, unitary ion (e.g., sodium, potassium, chloride) or molecule (e.g., glucose). An osmole is a number (like "dozen" is a number) of any such particles, regardless of their identity. Thus, the number of osmotic entities per kilogram of water determines osmolality. Osmotic equilibrium means that osmolalities inside and outside the cell are equal. Osmotic equilibrium is maintained with a vengeance: when osmolality is changed inside or outside the cell, water moves rapidly across the membrane to restore equilibrium, in the direction of higher osmolality. Think "water chases osmoles" to visualize which direction the water goes.

Answer 3

When water has balanced the solute concentrations inside and outside a membrane. The water either goes into the cell to lower concentration or goes out to increase concentration.