Hydrolysis reactions use water to breakdown polymers into monomers and is the opposite of dehydration synthesis

, which forms water when synthesizing a polymer from monomers. Hydrolysis reactions break bonds and release energy.

What is the hydrolysis process?

Hydrolysis involves the reaction of an organic chemical with water to form two or more new substances and usually means the cleavage of chemical bonds by the addition of water. ... Thus hydrolysis adds water to break down, whereas condensation builds up by removing water.

What is hydrolysis in simple terms?

: a chemical process of decomposition involving the splitting of a bond and the addition of the hydrogen cation and the hydroxide anion of water.