What is the universal solvent known as?

Water is known as the universal solvent due to its unique chemical properties that allow it to dissolve a wide variety of substances. This is largely attributable to its polar nature, where one end of the water molecule carries a slight positive charge and the other end carries a slight negative charge. This polarity enables water molecules to interact with and separate molecules of other substances, thereby dissolving them.

For instance, when salt (sodium chloride) is added to water, the positive end of the water molecules surrounds the negative chloride ions, while the negative end surrounds the positive sodium ions. This interaction leads to the dissociation of the salt into its constituent ions, effectively dissolving it. Water's ability to dissolve many ionic compounds and polar molecules makes it an essential medium in biological and chemical processes, supporting life as we know it.

While alcohol can dissolve some substances and acids dissociate to release hydrogen ions in solution, neither of them accounts for as broad a range of solubility as water does. Salt, on the other hand, is a solute itself, not a solvent. Therefore, the label of "universal solvent" appropriately belongs to water due to its exceptional capacity to facilitate solutions across diverse chemical interactions.