Question #877df
1 Answer
Jun 15, 2016
Lower boiling point = higher vapor pressure = higher rate of evaporation.
Explanation:
Boiling point is defined as the temperature at which the vapor pressure is equal to atmospheric pressure. So if you have a low boiling point that means that the vapor pressure is high enough to match the atmospheric pressure at a lower temperature.
So what does this have to do with evaporation?
Evaporation is the rate at which a substance transitions from a condensed state, usually liquid, to the vapor state. Vapor pressure is the pressure exerted by a substance in a condensed state, usually liquid. So, the higher the vapor pressure, the more molecules (or sometimes atoms) are leaving the surface of the material per second. That is, in essence, evaporation.