What are the differences between evaporation and condensation?
Posted April 14, 2023
Basis of differentiation |
Evaporation |
Condensation |
Definition |
Refers to the process in which water gets converted into vapor |
Refers to the process in which water vapor gets converted to tiny water droplets |
Occurrence |
Can occur at all places, on all surfaces and at all times, and is more frequent when the air is hot, dry and windy |
Occurs when the vapor temperature decreases beyond saturation |
Phase change |
Liquid changes into gas or vapor |
Gas changes into liquid or even a solid |
Temperature requirements |
evaporation can occur at any temperature, but it is faster at higher temperatures |
condensation can occur at any temperature, but is more noticeable when there is a large temperature difference between object and atmosphere |
Mechanism |
In the process, the force of attraction between the particles becomes gradually weaker, ultimately breaking and converting from liquid to gas |
In the process, gaseous molecules aggregate around particles such as pollen, dust, and bacteria, ultimately converting from gas to liquid |
Heat exchange |
Endemic process - energy is consumed |
Exothermic process - energy is released |
Molecular force of attraction |
When a liquid is heated or pressure is lowered, the molecular force of attraction gets weaker, resulting in the liquid evaporating into a gas |
When a gas is cooled or when the pressure is increased, the molecular force of attraction becomes stronger, resulting in the gas condensing to a liquid |
Examples |
- Drying wet clothes outdoors - Drying of smaller natural water bodies such as lakes and ponds - Steam from boiling water |
- Formation of water droplets with water vapor comes in contact with a cooler surface - Fogging on eyeglasses when you step outdoors into the cold - Condensation of gases |
Application |
- For drying materials - For recovery of salts - For collection of precipitates |
- In refrigerators and air conditioners - In air wells and fog fences to prevent or reduce desertification |
Evaporation coefficient and condensation coefficient of vapor under high gas pressure conditions