Osmosis is the process of moving the Water between different types of concentration of substances that can be dissolved.
Osmosis involves the physics and the chemistry and is essential for cell survival, and it also comprises the discipline of biology.
In the osmosis process, the solvent (water) is transferred from a less concentrated (hypotonic) medium to a more concentrated (hypertonic) medium. This process does not require energy, which is why it is known as a process of passive transport. The process that requires energy is known as active transport.
During osmosis, the solvent tends to cross the semi-permeable membrane towards the solution with lower concentration, in such a way that the amount of solvent increases in this one and in the other decreases. This effect continues until hydrostatic pressure balances this trend. The osmosis effect is used in numerous applications and is one of the causes of the exchange processes in the nutrition of animal and plant cells.
Osmosis is also used colloquially, mainly with regard to studies and the way to acquire knowledge. Students, when they do not know a subject, say they would like to
learn by osmosis, that is, without spending a lot of energy and not even needing to study.Reverse or Reverse Osmosis
Reverse or reverse osmosis is the opposite process, where the substance is separated by a process. through impermeable membranes, which do not allow water to pass, counteracting the normal flow of the osmosis.
Osmosis and diffusion
Osmosis and diffusion are two types of passive transport, which takes place between two solutions and whose purpose is to equalize the concentrations of these solutions.
Diffusion is the transport of solute across membranes from the most concentrated medium to the least concentrated medium. Osmosis consists in passing the solvent from the medium with the highest concentration to the medium with the lowest concentration.
osmotic pressure
Osmotic pressure is an external pressure exerted on the solution with a higher concentration of solutes, preventing dilution. More simply, osmotic pressure is a force that is applied to stop the process of osmosis.
