Why does not distilled water conducts electricity?

Answer 1

For a material to conduct electricity it needs to have free charge carriers. I.e. particles with charge that can move around the material.

Distilled water, or pure water only contains H2O molecules, which are neutral. Rainwater on the other hand also contains other materials such as salt, which in water falls apart into positive and negative ions. These are serviceable charge carriers, and therefore rainwater can conduct electricity.

Answer 2

Because in order for water to conduct electricity, it has to have dissoloved ions. Pure water (distilled) will not conduct at all. Tap water has some ion from both the intentional additives (Floride, Chlorine, Chloramine, etc.) and unintended ion, such as copper, iron, and alike that it picked up on it's way to you.

Answer 3

Tap water contains significantly more ions of dissolved salts (ions of chloride, bicarbonate, sodium, calcium, magnesium) up to 0.010 mol/L, while pure water only contains 1.0*10-7 mol/L of H+ and OH- ions. Ions are the conductant part of a solution, not neutral water molecules.

Answer 4

Because tap water contains ions, charged particles that can conduct electricity if they are in liquid form or dissolved.

Electricity generates a potential difference between the two sides of the water and this will make the ions move so the potential is distributed through the water. Now at the other end of the water the ion distribution has changed and this is the same as a potential change.

In other words, because there was a potential difference at one side of the water, now there also is one at the other side, and that's what we call conduction of electricity. It's important to note that it's not the water that conducts electricity but it are the dissolved ions. So any liquid other liquid can also conduct electricity if you dissolve ions in it.

Pure water is purified of this ions, so it has no charged particles and thus can't distribute charge (or electricity).

I hope it's clear now; Thank you for your question.

Answer 5

Distilled water is a bad conductor of electricity because it does nat contain salt whereas tap water contains salt.Salt is a good conductor of electricity,so it allows current to pass through them.

Answer 6

Tap water has some salt, (sodium) that has the ability to conduct electricity. Distilled water has none of this.

Answer 7

because tap water usually contains dissolved electrolytes that helps conduction, while distilled water is freed of these compounds by the distillation process

Answer 8

Ions are needed to conduct electricity. Distilled water has no ions.

Answer 9

rain water has some ions from the atmosphere which is needed to conduct electricity, distilled water does not.