Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.
Solubility
Solubility refers to the maximum amount of a solute that can dissolve in a solvent at a given temperature. In this case, the solubility of NaNO3 in water changes with temperature, meaning that as the solution cools from 50 °C to 20 °C, the amount of NaNO3 that can remain dissolved decreases, leading to crystallization.
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Crystallization
Crystallization is the process where dissolved solute comes out of solution and forms solid crystals. This occurs when the solution becomes supersaturated, which can happen when the temperature drops, causing excess solute to precipitate out of the solution as solid NaNO3.
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Mass Balance
Mass balance is a principle used to account for the mass of substances in a system. In this scenario, it involves calculating the initial mass of NaNO3, determining how much remains dissolved at the lower temperature, and finding the difference to ascertain the mass of NaNO3 that crystallized out of the solution.
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