In crystallography, water of crystallization or water of hydration or crystallization water is water that occurs in crystals. Water of crystallization is necessary for the maintenance of crystalline properties, but capable of being removed by sufficient heat. It is the total weight of water retained by certain salts at a given temperature and is mostly present in a definite (stoichiometric) ratio. Classically, "water of crystallization" refers to water that is found in the crystalline framework of a metal complex but which is not directly bonded to the metal ion.
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Hydrated copper(II) sulfate is bright blue.
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Anhydrous copper(II) sulfate is colorless.
Upon crystallization from water or moist solvents, many compounds incorporate water molecules in their crystalline frameworks.
Compared to inorganic salts, proteins crystallize with unusually large amounts of water in the crystal lattice. A water content of 50% is not uncommon. The extended hydration shell is what allows the protein crystallographer to argue that the conformation in the crystal is not too far from the native conformation in solution.
Read more about Water Of Crystallization: Nomenclature, Position in The Crystal Structure, Analysis, Other Solvents of Crystallization, Table of Crystallization Water in Some Inorganic Halides
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“The Laws of Nature are just, but terrible. There is no weak mercy in them. Cause and consequence are inseparable and inevitable. The elements have no forbearance. The fire burns, the water drowns, the air consumes, the earth buries. And perhaps it would be well for our race if the punishment of crimes against the Laws of Man were as inevitable as the punishment of crimes against the Laws of Nature—were Man as unerring in his judgments as Nature.”
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882)