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Chapter 7: Problem 4

A kettle of water heats up rapidly on the stove but takes quite a while to boil away. Why does the water take so long to turn into steam?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Water requires a significant amount of energy (latent heat) to transform from liquid to steam, which is why it takes time.

Step by step solution

01

- Understand the Heating Process

When the kettle of water is placed on the stove, the heat energy is transferred from the stove to the water, raising its temperature. This process continues until the water reaches its boiling point at 100°C (212°F).
02

- Recognize Boiling Point

Boiling is the phase transition from liquid to gas that occurs when water reaches 100°C. At this temperature, the water molecules have enough energy to break free from the liquid state and become steam.
03

- Latent Heat of Vaporization

To turn into steam, the water requires additional energy even though its temperature remains constant. This energy is called the latent heat of vaporization. It is the amount of heat necessary for the water to overcome molecular bonds and transform into steam.
04

- Significant Energy Requirement

The latent heat of vaporization for water is quite high (approximately 2260 kJ/kg). This means a significant amount of energy must be absorbed by each kilogram of water for all the molecules to evaporate, which explains why the water takes a long time to completely turn into steam.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

Heating Process
When you place a kettle of water on the stove, the heating process begins. The heat energy from the stove is transferred to the water molecules.
This causes the temperature of the water to rise gradually. The heat energy increases the kinetic energy of the water molecules, making them move more rapidly.
As heat continuously transfers into the water, it approaches its boiling point.
This initial stage is all about raising the water's temperature. Once it reaches 100°C (212°F), the next phase begins!
Boiling Point
The boiling point of water is 100°C (212°F). At this temperature, something fascinating happens. The liquid water transitions to its gas form, turning into steam.
This is a classic phase transition known as boiling. At the boiling point, the energy from the heat source is now used to change the state of the water, rather than increasing its temperature further.
This is why the temperature of boiling water remains constant at the boiling point.
Phase Transition
A phase transition is when matter changes from one state to another, like from liquid to gas during boiling. During the boiling phase, water molecules at the surface gain enough energy to break free and form steam.
It's important to note that the temperature doesn't increase during this phase transition.
Instead, the energy goes into breaking the molecular bonds that hold the liquid state together.
The water requires continuous energy input to completely transition from liquid to gas.
Energy Transfer
Energy transfer is crucial in understanding why water takes time to boil away. When boiling, heat energy is translated into potential energy, allowing water molecules to escape as gas.
This process demands a lot of energy, without further raising the water temperature.
Each kilogram of water requires a significant amount of energy to undergo this transformation, making the entire process slow but thorough.
Molecular Bonds
Molecular bonds are the reasons why water needs so much energy to turn into steam. In liquid water, molecules are held together by hydrogen bonds. These bonds are relatively strong and require a lot of energy to break.
The energy required to break these bonds during the phase transition is known as the latent heat of vaporization.
Because water has a high latent heat of vaporization, it takes longer for all the molecules to transition from liquid to gas.
This explains why it takes a significant amount of time and energy for the entire kettle of water to boil away.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

When you breathe out on a cold day, you often see mist appearing from your mouth. Explain.

You are heating water in a pot on the stove. Shortly before the water boils properly, bubbles of steam begin rising from the bottom of the pot but vanish before they reach the water's surface. What happens to those bubbles?
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