User:Milton Beychok/Sandbox: Difference between revisions

From Citizendium
Jump to navigation Jump to search
imported>Milton Beychok
No edit summary
imported>Milton Beychok
No edit summary
Line 1: Line 1:
In [[chemistry]] and [[physics]], '''volatility''' is a term used to characterize the tendency of a substance to vaporize.<ref>'''Note:''' To vaporize means to become a vapor.</ref> It is directly related to a substance' s [[vapor pressure]]. At a given [[temperature]], a substance with a higher vapor pressure will vaporize more readily than a [[Gas|vapor]] with a lower vapor pressure.<ref>[http://www.bae.uky.edu/~snokes/BAE549thermo/gasesvapor.htm Gases and Vapor] ([[University of Kentucky]] website)</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=James G. Speight|title=The Chemistry and Technology of Petroleum|edition=4th Edition|publisher=CRC Press|date=2006|isbn=0-8493-9067-2}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Kister, Henry Z.|title=[[Distillation Design]]|edition=1st Edition|publisher=McGraw-hill|year=1992|isbn=0-07-034909-6}}</ref>


In common usage, the term applies primarily to [[liquid]]s. However, it may also be used to characterize the process of  [[Sublimation (chemistry)|sublimation]] by which certain [[solid]] substances such as solid [[carbon dioxide]] (CO<sub>2</sub> (referred to as [[dry ice]]) and [[ammonium chloride]] (NH<sub>4</sub>Cl) change directly from their solid form to a vapor without becoming a liquid.
== References ==
{{reflist}}

Revision as of 18:09, 19 September 2010

In chemistry and physics, volatility is a term used to characterize the tendency of a substance to vaporize.[1] It is directly related to a substance' s vapor pressure. At a given temperature, a substance with a higher vapor pressure will vaporize more readily than a vapor with a lower vapor pressure.[2][3][4]

In common usage, the term applies primarily to liquids. However, it may also be used to characterize the process of sublimation by which certain solid substances such as solid carbon dioxide (CO2 (referred to as dry ice) and ammonium chloride (NH4Cl) change directly from their solid form to a vapor without becoming a liquid.



References

  1. Note: To vaporize means to become a vapor.
  2. Gases and Vapor (University of Kentucky website)
  3. James G. Speight (2006). The Chemistry and Technology of Petroleum, 4th Edition. CRC Press. ISBN 0-8493-9067-2. 
  4. Kister, Henry Z. (1992). Distillation Design, 1st Edition. McGraw-hill. ISBN 0-07-034909-6.