PH-2161
Melting, boiling and evaporation
Physics · Secondary 4 · Hard · Melting, boiling and evaporation
A chef accidentally touches steam escaping from a pot of boiling water at 100°C and gets a worse burn than from touching the boiling water itself at 100°C. Why is the burn from the steam more severe?
- Steam releases extra heat when it condenses to liquid water at 100°C on the skin.
- Steam has a higher temperature than boiling water, even when both are at 100°C.
- Steam has no mass, so it transfers all its energy instantly to the skin.
- Steam cools down more slowly than water, so less energy is lost to the air.
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