Solubility is the property of a solid, liquid, or gaseous chemical substance called solute to dissolve in a solid, liquid, or gaseous solvent to form a homogeneous solution of the solute in the solvent. The solubility of a substance fundamentally depends on the physical and chemical properties of the used solute and solvent as well as on temperature, pressure and the pH of the solution. The extent of the solubility of a substance in a specific solvent is measured as the saturation concentration, where adding more solute does not increase the concentration of the solution and begin to precipitate the excess amount of solute.
Most often, the solvent is a liquid, which can be a pure substance or a mixture. One may also speak of solid solution, but rarely of solution in a gas (see vapor-liquid equilibrium instead).
The extent of solubility ranges widely, from infinitely soluble (without limit) (fully miscible[1]) such as ethanol in water, to poorly soluble, such as silver chloride in water. The term insoluble is often applied to poorly or very poorly soluble compounds.
Under certain conditions, the equilibrium solubility can be exceeded to give a so-called supersaturated solution, which is metastable.[2]
Solubility is not to be confused with the ability to dissolve or liquefy a substance, because the solution might occur not only because of dissolution but also because of a chemical reaction. For example zinc, which is insoluble in hydrochloric acid, does dissolve in hydrochloric acid but by chemical reaction into hydrogen gas and zinc chloride, which in turn is soluble in the acid. Solubility does not also depend on particle size or other kinetic factors; given enough time, even large particles will eventually dissolve.