Physics › Section I · Temperature, gases, and heat › Topic I.6
Phase change and latent heat
Melting ice and boiling water soak up large amounts of energy without getting any warmer. That hidden energy, latent heat, explains why ice chills a drink so well, why steam burns so badly and why sweating keeps you cool.
In this topic
- Heat that does not raise the temperature
- Latent heat: Q = mL
- How big these numbers are
- Heating curves
- Worked example: freezer ice to cool water
- Worked example: why steam burns
- Mixing with ice: check before you solve
- Worked example: chilling lemonade
- Evaporation and sweating
- Releasing heat, and skipping the liquid
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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