Question

what is the difference between adsorption and absorption ? Give one example for each

Answer 1

Absorption is the process in which fluid is dissolved by a liquid or solid( absorbent). Adsorption is the process by which the atoms , molecules from a substance ( it could be a gas , liquid or dissolved solid) adhere to a surface of the absorbent

Answer 2

Answer:

The surface phenomenon of crowding up of molecules of a substance at the base surface rather than in the mass (bulk) of a solid or liquid is called Adsorption.

Adsorbate is the substance that gets adsorbed and the adsorbent is the substance on whose surface the adsorption takes place. Here, the concentration of the adsorbate on the surface of the adsorbent increases. The concentration of the substance remains at the surface only in the case of adsorption.

It does not penetrate through the surface to the bulk of the solid or liquid.

For example, on dipping a chalk stick into an ink solution, there is only a color change on its surface and it will be found to be white from inside when the chalk stick is broken.

On the other hand, the process of absorption is a bulk phenomenon. In absorption, the substance gets uniformly distributed throughout the bulk of the solid or liquid.