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Answers to Readers' Questions on Physical Science:

Evaporation

The following 2 comments and questions have been sent in. They are listed according to date.

List of first 10 items

• Is mist gas or liquid?
• What happens to gas after evaporation?

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Is mist gas or liquid?

Question

March 28, 2010

Is mist gas or liquid?
Because my teacher said it is gas but a lot of websites said it is liquid.
Would you mind explaining the answer too?
Thanks

- Hong Kong

19450

Answer

Mist or fog is a mixture of very small liquid water drops and air, which is a gas.

However, humidity in air is a gas, because the water molecules are absorbed in a solution in the air.

So, the answer is that mist is a mixture of liquid and gas.

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What happens to gas after evaporation?

Question

March 21, 2010

Excuse me, I am wondering that what happens to the gas after evaporation, does the KE remain as high as when it evaporates?
Eg,water
Before Evaporation After evaporation
KE(Boiling point) KE()

- Hong Kong

19401

Answer

Once atoms or molecules reach a high enough kinetic energy to break free from a liquid, either through evaporation or boiling, they maintain at least that minimum kinetic energy. If, for some reason, they would slow down, they would revert back to the liquid state.

However, it is possible to increase their kinetic energy. For example, the temperature of steam (and thus the kinetic energy of its molecules) can be increased well beyond the boiling point temperature.

With evaporation, only molecules with sufficient KE escape the liquid. This lowers the average KE of the liquid.

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