a definition of evaporation
noun. Evaporation from a pot. Evaporation from a pot. Evaporation is defined as the process of a liquid changing into a gas. An example of evaporation is water turning into steam. Noun. Noun. (countable and uncountable, plural evaporations). 1  The process of a liquid converting to the gaseous state. 2  The process in which all or a portion of liquid (in a container) is turned into vapour, in order to increase the concentration of solid matter in the mixture. ( 3 archaic) That which is evaporated; vapor. Shawn Henning. Evaporation Definition: the process by which molecules undergo the a spontaneous transition from the liquid phase to the gas phase. Evaporation is the opposite of condensation. Example: The gradual drying of damp clothes is caused by the evaporation of water into water vapor. Return to the Chemistry Glossary Index. Sometimes the transfer is so one-sided for a molecule near the surface that it ends up with enough energy to 'escape'. Evaporation is an essential part of the water cycle. The sun (solar energy) drives evaporation of water from oceans, lakes, moisture in the soil, and other sources of water. Evaporation that occurs directly from the solid phase below the melting point, as commonly observed with ice at or below freezing or moth crystals (napthalene or paradichlorobenzene), is called sublimation. On average, a fraction of the molecules in a glass of water have enough heat energy to escape from the liquid. Credit: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Evaporation is the process by which water changes from a liquid to a gas or vapor. Evaporation is the primary pathway that water moves from the liquid state back into the water cycle as atmospheric water vapor. In hydrology, evaporation and transpiration (which involves evaporation within plant stomata) are collectively termed evapotranspiration. Evaporation of water occurs when the surface of the liquid is exposed, allowing molecules to escape and form water vapor; this vapor can then rise up and form clouds. A very small amount of water vapor enters the atmosphere through sublimation, the process by which water changes from a solid (ice or snow) to a gas, bypassing the liquid phase. This often happens in the Rocky Mountains as dry and warm Chinook winds blow in from the Pacific in late winter and early spring. Evaporation is more prevalent over the oceans than precipitation, while over the land, precipitation routinely exceeds evaporation. Most of the water that evaporates from the oceans falls back into the oceans as precipitation. The water in the glass will be cooled by the evaporation until an equilibrium is reached where the air supplies the amount of heat removed by the evaporating water. In an enclosed environment the water would evaporate until the air is saturated.
A process by which water changes from a liquid to a gas or vapor.