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Volatility (chemistry)
Encyclopedia
In chemistry
and physics
, volatility is the tendency of a substance to vaporize. Volatility is directly related to a substance's vapor pressure
. At a given temperature, a substance with higher vapor pressure
vaporizes more readily than a substance with a lower vapor pressure.
The term is primarily written to be applied to liquid
s; however, it may be used to describe the process of sublimation
which is associated with solid
substances, such as dry ice
(solid carbon dioxide
) and ammonium chloride
, which can change directly from the solid state to a vapor
without becoming liquid.
at which its gaseous phase is in equilibrium with its condensed phases (liquid or solid). It is a measure of the tendency of molecule
s and atom
s to escape from a liquid or a solid. A liquid's atmospheric pressure
boiling point corresponds to the temperature
at which its vapor pressure is equal to the surrounding atmospheric pressure and it is often called the normal boiling point.
The higher the vapor pressure of a liquid at a given temperature, the higher the volatility and the lower the normal boiling point of the liquid. The vapor pressure chart (right hand side) displays the vapor pressures dependency for a variety of liquids as a function of temperature.
For example, at any given temperature, propane
has the highest vapor pressure of any of the liquids in the chart. It also has the lowest normal boiling point (-42.1 °C), which is where the vapor pressure curve of propane (the purple line) intersects the horizontal pressure line of one atmosphere (atm
) of absolute vapor pressure.
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, volatility is the tendency of a substance to vaporize. Volatility is directly related to a substance's vapor pressure
Vapor pressure
Vapor pressure or equilibrium vapor pressure is the pressure of a vapor in thermodynamic equilibrium with its condensed phases in a closed system. All liquids have a tendency to evaporate, and some solids can sublimate into a gaseous form...
. At a given temperature, a substance with higher vapor pressure
Vapor pressure
Vapor pressure or equilibrium vapor pressure is the pressure of a vapor in thermodynamic equilibrium with its condensed phases in a closed system. All liquids have a tendency to evaporate, and some solids can sublimate into a gaseous form...
vaporizes more readily than a substance with a lower vapor pressure.
The term is primarily written to be applied to liquid
Liquid
Liquid is one of the three classical states of matter . Like a gas, a liquid is able to flow and take the shape of a container. Some liquids resist compression, while others can be compressed. Unlike a gas, a liquid does not disperse to fill every space of a container, and maintains a fairly...
s; however, it may be used to describe the process of sublimation
Sublimation (physics)
Sublimation is the process of transition of a substance from the solid phase to the gas phase without passing through an intermediate liquid phase...
which is associated with solid
Solid
Solid is one of the three classical states of matter . It is characterized by structural rigidity and resistance to changes of shape or volume. Unlike a liquid, a solid object does not flow to take on the shape of its container, nor does it expand to fill the entire volume available to it like a...
substances, such as dry ice
Dry ice
Dry ice, sometimes referred to as "Cardice" or as "card ice" , is the solid form of carbon dioxide. It is used primarily as a cooling agent. Its advantages include lower temperature than that of water ice and not leaving any residue...
(solid carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
) and ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride NH4Cl is an inorganic compound with the formula NH4Cl. It is a white crystalline salt that is highly soluble in water. Solutions of ammonium chloride are mildly acidic. Sal ammoniac is a name of natural, mineralogical form of ammonium chloride...
, which can change directly from the solid state to a vapor
Vapor
A vapor or vapour is a substance in the gas phase at a temperature lower than its critical point....
without becoming liquid.
Relations between vapor pressure, temperature, and boiling point
The vapor pressure of a substance is the pressurePressure
Pressure is the force per unit area applied in a direction perpendicular to the surface of an object. Gauge pressure is the pressure relative to the local atmospheric or ambient pressure.- Definition :...
at which its gaseous phase is in equilibrium with its condensed phases (liquid or solid). It is a measure of the tendency of molecule
Molecule
A molecule is an electrically neutral group of at least two atoms held together by covalent chemical bonds. Molecules are distinguished from ions by their electrical charge...
s and atom
Atom
The atom is a basic unit of matter that consists of a dense central nucleus surrounded by a cloud of negatively charged electrons. The atomic nucleus contains a mix of positively charged protons and electrically neutral neutrons...
s to escape from a liquid or a solid. A liquid's atmospheric pressure
Atmospheric pressure
Atmospheric pressure is the force per unit area exerted into a surface by the weight of air above that surface in the atmosphere of Earth . In most circumstances atmospheric pressure is closely approximated by the hydrostatic pressure caused by the weight of air above the measurement point...
boiling point corresponds to the temperature
Temperature
Temperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
at which its vapor pressure is equal to the surrounding atmospheric pressure and it is often called the normal boiling point.
The higher the vapor pressure of a liquid at a given temperature, the higher the volatility and the lower the normal boiling point of the liquid. The vapor pressure chart (right hand side) displays the vapor pressures dependency for a variety of liquids as a function of temperature.
For example, at any given temperature, propane
Propane
Propane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...
has the highest vapor pressure of any of the liquids in the chart. It also has the lowest normal boiling point (-42.1 °C), which is where the vapor pressure curve of propane (the purple line) intersects the horizontal pressure line of one atmosphere (atm
Atmosphere (unit)
The standard atmosphere is an international reference pressure defined as 101325 Pa and formerly used as unit of pressure. For practical purposes it has been replaced by the bar which is 105 Pa...
) of absolute vapor pressure.
See also
- Clausius-Clapeyron relationClausius-Clapeyron relationThe Clausius–Clapeyron relation, named after Rudolf Clausius and Benoît Paul Émile Clapeyron, who defined it sometime after 1834, is a way of characterizing a discontinuous phase transition between two phases of matter. On a pressure–temperature diagram, the line separating the two phases is known...
- DistillationDistillationDistillation is a method of separating mixtures based on differences in volatilities of components in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction....
- Fractional distillationFractional distillationFractional distillation is the separation of a mixture into its component parts, or fractions, such as in separating chemical compounds by their boiling point by heating them to a temperature at which several fractions of the compound will evaporate. It is a special type of distillation...
- Partial pressurePartial pressureIn a mixture of ideal gases, each gas has a partial pressure which is the pressure which the gas would have if it alone occupied the volume. The total pressure of a gas mixture is the sum of the partial pressures of each individual gas in the mixture....
- Raoult's law
- Relative volatilityRelative volatilityRelative volatility is a measure comparing the vapor pressures of the components in a liquid mixture of chemicals. This quantity is widely used in designing large industrial distillation processes. In effect, it indicates the ease or difficulty of using distillation to separate the more volatile...
- Vapor-liquid equilibriumVapor-liquid equilibriumVapor–liquid equilibrium is a condition where a liquid and its vapor are in equilibrium with each other, a condition or state where the rate of evaporation equals the rate of condensation on a molecular level such that there is no net vapor-liquid interconversion...
- Volatile organic compoundVolatile organic compoundVolatile organic compounds are organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure at ordinary, room-temperature conditions. Their high vapor pressure results from a low boiling point, which causes large numbers of molecules to evaporate or sublimate from the liquid or solid form of the compound and...
External links
- Volatility from ilpi.com
- Definition of volatile from Wiktionary