Factors Affecting Evaporation Of Liquid

Factors Affecting Evaporation

Gloria Makochieng

10R

Introduction

Evaporation is the change of state from a liquid to a gas. It doesn’t occur at a specific temperature. Evaporation occurs when a molecule at a liquid’s surface gain enough energy to escape from the surface of the liquid. The rate at which evaporation happens is affected by surface area, temperature and draught (air moving over the surface of a liquid). I will be conducting my investigation on how it is affected by surface area.

Question to be tested How does the surface area affect how much of a liquid is evaporated?

Hypothesis

I predict that the larger the surface area of the liquid, the more of the liquid that will evaporate in a given amount of time. The rate of evaporation will be less in a liquid that has a small surface area. This is because, in the case of large surface area, there are more molecules at the surface per unit of volume that could potentially escape.

Variables

• Independent – Surface area

• Dependent – Volume of water evaporated

• Controlled – Duration of the experiment, initial volume of water

Apparatus

• Four beakers of different sizes i.e 50ml, 100ml, 250ml, 500ml

• Acetone

• Graduated measuring cylinder

• Stopwatch

• Tissue

• Writing materials i.e. pen and paper

• Tray

• White stickers/ Masking tape

Method

1. Assemble the apparatus

2. Take four white stickers (or masking tape) and use them to label each of the four beakers.

(The largest beaker being labelled number 1 and the