Why does granulated sugar dissolve faster than sugar cubes?    

Expert Answers

An illustration of the letter 'A' in a speech bubbles

The reason granulated sugar dissolves faster than a sugar cube has to do with surface area. A sugar cube is tightly compacted granulated sugar, meaning it has less surface area exposed to the solvent. Granulated sugar has a significantly higher surface area exposed to the solvent, allowing it to dissolve faster. The solvent could be water for example. When the sugar is granulated, each individual granule is touching the water. This allows the water to act on all of the sugar granules at the same time. In a sugar cube, only the outside granules are exposed to the water, so only those ones can be dissolved. As the sugar cube dissolves, more granules are exposed, allowing them to be dissolved. This process takes longer than dissolving all the granules at once. In summary, the more surface area exposed, the faster the solute (sugar) will dissolve.

Approved by eNotes Editorial Team

We’ll help your grades soar


  • 30,000+ book summaries
  • 20% study tools discount
  • Ad-free content
  • PDF downloads
  • 300,000+ answers
  • 5-star customer support
Start your 48-Hour Free Trial