Predict the state of the solute in the following situations :(a) Experimentally determined molar mass is more than the true value.(b) ‘i’ value is 0·4

(a) If the experimentally determined molar mass is more than the true value, it indicates that the solute may have associated in the solution. In other words, the solute particles have combined to form larger particles, thus increasing the apparent molar mass.

(b) The 'i' value or the van't Hoff factor is a measure of the extent of dissociation or association of solute particles in a solution. If the 'i' value is 0.4, it suggests that the solute is largely associated in the solution. This is because an 'i' value less than 1 indicates association, while an 'i' value greater than 1 indicates dissociation. Therefore, in this case, the solute is likely to be in an associated state.