Vaporization facts for kids
Vaporization is a cool science word for when a liquid turns into a gas. Think about a puddle disappearing on a sunny day, or water bubbling when it gets hot enough to make steam. These are all examples of vaporization! It's a type of phase change, which means a substance changes its form, but not what it's made of. There are two main ways this can happen: evaporation and boiling.
What is Vaporization?
Vaporization is the process where a substance changes from its liquid state to its gaseous state. The gas form of a substance that is usually a liquid at room temperature is often called a "vapor." This change happens because the particles in the liquid gain enough energy to break away and become free-moving gas particles.
Evaporation: The Slow Change
Evaporation is a type of vaporization that happens slowly. It occurs when a liquid turns into a gas below its boiling point. You can see evaporation happening all the time!
- When a wet sidewalk dries after rain, that's evaporation.
- When your clothes dry on a clothesline, that's evaporation.
- When a bowl of water slowly disappears over time, that's evaporation.
Evaporation only happens at the surface of the liquid. The fastest-moving particles at the very top of the liquid gain enough energy to escape into the air as a gas. The warmer the liquid, the faster the evaporation usually happens.
Boiling: The Fast Change
Boiling is another type of vaporization, but it's much faster and more energetic than evaporation. Boiling happens when a liquid reaches its boiling point. The boiling point is a specific temperature where the liquid's vapor pressure becomes strong enough to push against the air pressure around it.
When a liquid boils, bubbles of gas form inside the liquid, not just on the surface. These bubbles rise to the top and release the gas into the air. For example, when you boil water for pasta, you see lots of bubbles forming and rising. This means the water has reached its boiling point, which is 100 degrees Celsius (212 degrees Fahrenheit) at standard air pressure.
See also
In Spanish: Vaporización para niños
