MgCl2 is soluble in water but insoluble in acetone,

Question

Give reasons :

MgCl₂ is soluble in water but insoluble in acetone, while methane is insoluble in water, but soluble in acetone. 

Answer 1

MgCl₂ is an ionic compound. Thus it can easily dissolve in polar solvents like water (like dissolves like). On the other hand it does not dissolve in a non-polar solvent like acetone.

Methane (CH₄ ) is a non-polar covalent compound. Thus it does not dissolve in polar solvents like water. On the other hand, it can easily dissolves in non-polar solvents like acetone.