sublimation

(noun)

The process of transformation directly from the solid to the gaseous phase, without passing through an intermediate liquid phase.

Related Terms

Examples of sublimation in the following topics:

  • Solid to Gas Phase Transition

    • For some substances, such as carbon and arsenic, sublimation is much easier than evaporation.
    • The enthalpy of sublimation (also called heat of sublimation) can be calculated as the sum of the enthalpy of fusion and the enthalpy of vaporization.
    • The reverse process of sublimation is deposition (i.e., gas to solid).
    • For example, solid iodine, I2, is easily sublimed at temperatures around 100°C.
    • Solid carbon dioxide (known as "dry ice") sublimes into the air.

  • Properties of Carbon

    • It is a solid, and sublimes at 3,642 °C (it has the highest sublimation point of all the elements).

  • Properties of Sulfur

    • It melts at 115.21 °C, boils at 444.6 °C, and sublimes easily.

  • Interpreting Phase Diagrams

    • The thermodynamic properties of mothballs, made of 1,4-Dichlorobenzene, are used to repel insects. 1,4- Dichlorobenzene sublimates (transitions from solid to gas) at room temperature.

  • Physical and Chemical Changes to Matter

    • Phase changes are changes that occur when substances are melted, frozen, boiled, condensed, sublimated, or deposited.

  • Naming Familiar Inorganic Compounds

    • Alcohol entered the English language in the 17th century with the meaning of a "sublimated" substance, then changed to mean the "pure spirit" of anything, and only became associated with "spirit of wine" in 1753.

  • Substances that Exist as Gases

    • These same processes in the reverse direction are "freezing"; "condensation"; and "sublimation."

  • Three States of Matter

    • A solid can also change directly into a gas through a process called sublimation.

  • Carbon Oxides and Carbonates

    • It has no liquid state at pressures below 520 kPa; at 1 atm, the gas deposits directly to a solid at temperatures below -78.5 °C, and the solid sublimes directly to gas above this temperature.

  • Crystalline Solids

    • Some decompose before melting, a few sublime, but a majority undergo repeated melting and crystallization without any change in molecular structure.