latent heat: Quick Facts

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The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Did You Know?

To melt, ice requires external energy to absorb in the form of latent heat.

Photos

melting ice cubes

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Topics

heat of sublimation heat of vaporization heat of fusion Clausius-Clapeyron equation heat phase change phase diagram phase rule distillation thermal conductivity melting enthalpy Condensation thermal conduction vaporization heat capacity

Key People

Joseph Black, detail of an engraving by J. Rogers after a portrait by Sir Henry Raeburn

Joseph Black

British scientist