Explain why conductivity of purified water is not zero?

Question

Explain why conductivity of purified water is not zero?

Answer 1

Pure water does ionize to some degree, albeit not all that much.  At around room temperature, we expect the amount of H+ and OH- ions (that's what water would break up into) to be around 1.0 X 10^ -7 M.  With ionization comes conductivity (though not that much in this case).

Answer 2

Distilled water naturally ionizes slightly. It contains hydronium (H3O+) and hydroxide (OH-) groups in minute concentrations. Ions, in turn, are what causes conductivity in aqueous solutions.

At 25 degrees Celsius, the product of their concentration is

Kw = [H3O+] x [OH-] = 1.00 x 10^-14

Hope I helped! =)