Why does a liquids rate of evaporation

See also : alcohol , boiling point , vapor pressure , volatility. Additional definitions from Google and OneLook. Entry last updated: Monday, February 3, This page is copyright by ILPI. Unauthorized duplication or posting on other web sites is expressly prohibited. Send suggestions, comments, and new entry desires include the URL if applicable to us by email. Disclaimer : The information contained herein is believed to be true and accurate, however ILPI makes no guarantees concerning the veracity of any statement.

Condensation is the change of state from a gas to a liquid. In order for a liquid molecule to escape into the gas state, the molecule must have enough kinetic energy to overcome the intermolecular attractive forces in the liquid. Recall that a given liquid sample will have molecules with a wide range of kinetic energies.

Liquid molecules that have this certain threshold kinetic energy escape the surface and become vapor. As a result, the liquid molecules that remain now have lower kinetic energy. As evaporation occurs, the temperature of the remaining liquid decreases. You have observed the effects of evaporative cooling. On a hot day, the water molecules in your perspiration absorb body heat and evaporate from the surface of your skin.

The evaporating process leaves the remaining perspiration cooler, which in turn absorbs more heat from your body. A given liquid will evaporate more quickly when it is heated. This is because the heating process results in a greater fraction of the liquid's molecules having the necessary kinetic energy to escape the surface of the liquid. The figure below shows the kinetic energy distribution of liquid molecules at two temperatures. The numbers of molecules that have the required kinetic energy to evaporate are shown in the shaded area under the curve at the right.

Its altitude presents many practical problems to climbers. The oxygen content of the air is much lower than at sea level, making it necessary to bring oxygen tanks along although a few climbers have reached the peak without oxygen.

One other problem is that of boiling water for cooking food. High-pressure systems are usually associated with clear weather. The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited. Caryl-Sue, National Geographic Society. Dunn, Margery G. For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service.

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Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives. Evaporation is the process by which a liquid turns into a gas. It is also one of the three main steps in the global water cycle. Watch this brief, video picture of practice that captures everyday classroom life and provides real-life examples of how students learn and think about freshwater topics.

The water cycle describes how water is exchanged cycled through Earth's land, ocean, and atmosphere. Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary.