Definition
An aqueous solution is one in which the solvent is liquid water. That is, solute (dissolved) ions and molecules are surrounded by water molecules and incorporated into the network of bonds within the water. The dissolved species then spread throughout the water.
Aqueous Solutions in Geochemistry
In geochemistry, by far the most important solvent is water. In general, geochemists divide natural waters into three types: freshwaters (including rain, rivers, lakes, and shallow groundwaters), seawater, and brines (including evaporative basins, many hydrothermal waters, and deep groundwaters). Natural waters also may be intermediates between these types, formed by mixing (e.g., estuarine waters from seawater and river water) or by evaporation (e.g., a brine from partial evaporation of seawater). The typical chemical characteristics of natural waters are shown in Table 1.
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Bickmore, B.R., Wander, M.C.F. (2017). Aqueous Solutions. In: White, W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geochemistry. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_3-1
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