Why does seawater contain a lot of salt?

Seawater is the "home" of salt, and seawater contains various salts, about 90% of which are sodium chloride, that is, table salt. In addition, it also contains magnesium chloride, magnesium sulfate, magnesium carbonate and other salts containing potassium, iodine, sodium, bromine and other elements. Where does so much salt come from in the sea?

Scientists compared seawater to river water, studied soil and gravel after rain, and learned that the salt in seawater is brought by rivers on land through flowing water. When the rainwater falls to the ground, it collects lower and forms small rivers, which flow into the rivers, and some of the water seeps into the ground through various formations, and then emerges in other areas, and finally flows into the sea. As water flows, it passes through various soil and rock layers, causing it to decompose to produce various salts, which are carried into the sea with the water.

As seawater evaporates over time, the concentration of salt increases, and it is not surprising that the oceans have been formed for hundreds of thousands of years, so it is not surprising that seawater contains so much salt.

Sea water is not salty in the first place. Because the Earth's water is constantly moving and circulating, hundreds of millions of tons of water evaporate from the surface of the ocean every year. This amount of water will turn into rain and fall to every corner of the land, and it will continue to break the rocks, wash the soil, and carry the soluble matter (mostly salt) in the rock and soil into the river, and finally the river will return to the sea, and the water will once again return to its homeland, the ocean.

In this way, the ocean receives a steady stream of salts from the land, but in the process of evaporation of seawater, these salts cannot be lifted with the water vapor and can only remain in the ocean. Over time, the amount of salt in the ocean accumulates more and more, and over millions of years or more, the amount of salt accumulated in the sea is considerable.

Why is there so much salt in seawater, and where does it come from?

The origin of seawater salinity is a complex issue related to the origin of the earth and the formation and evolution of the oceans. It is generally believed that the salt is mainly from the weathering products of crustal rocks and soluble compounds ejected from submarine volcanoes. In addition, the world's rivers transport dissolved salt to the ocean every year, which is also one of the salts** of seawater.

The salt content of seawater in the world's oceans varies from place to place, but the average is about the most common of these inorganic salts dissolved in seawater, sodium chloride, i.e. table salt for daily use. Some of the salt comes from volcanoes at the bottom of the sea, but most of it comes from rocks in the earth's crust. The rocks are weathered and disintegrate, releasing salts, which are then carried to the sea by the river.

In the cycle of vaporization and condensation of seawater into water, the salts remain after the evaporation of seawater and gradually accumulate to their current concentrations. The oceans contain so much salt that they can spread up to 500 feet thick on the world's land.

Why is seawater salty? Does it get saltier and saltier over time? For many years, people have not had a common view.

The reason why seawater is salty is because there are about 3 5% salt in seawater, most of which is sodium chloride, and a small amount of magnesium chloride, potassium sulfate, calcium carbonate, etc. It is these salts that make the sea water bitter and astringent, difficult to consume. So where do these salts come from?

Some scientists believe that the surface water (including seawater) that has just begun to form on the earth during a long geological period is freshwater. Later, due to the erosion of the surface rocks by the current, the salt of the rocks is constantly dissolved in the water. These streams then merge into large rivers into the sea, and as the water continues to evaporate, the salt gradually settles, and over time, the salt accumulates more and more, so that the sea becomes salty.

If this reasoning is followed, then the sea water will become saltier and saltier over time.

Some scientists have a different view. They believe that seawater is sensible from the beginning and is formed innately. According to their test research, the seawater is not getting thalier and the salinity in the seawater is not increasing, but the proportion of salt in the seawater is different in the various geological periods of the earth's history.

There are also some scientists who believe that the reason why seawater is salty is not only due to congenital reasons, but also due to later factors. The salt content in seawater is not only due to the continuous inflow of salts from the continent into the seawater, but also the overflow of seafloor magma at the bottom of the ocean with the eruption of submarine volcanoes, which will also increase the salinity of seawater, which is agreed by most scholars.

Some scientists have pointed out that although there will be more and more salts in the ocean, as the soluble salts in the sea continue to increase, chemical reactions will occur between them to form insoluble compounds that sink to the bottom of the sea, and over time, they will be absorbed by the seabed, and the salinity in the ocean may remain balanced.

In short, why is seawater salty and will it get saltier? This also requires continuous exploration and research by scientists.