Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 26, 2026
11:20
Fabrication of Superhydrophobic Metal Surfaces for Anti-Icing Applications
Published on: August 15, 2018
9.0K
Surface phase transitions in ice: from fundamental interactions to applications
J S Wettlaufer1,2,3
11 Yale University , New Haven , CT , USA.
Summary
Surface energy effects are crucial in multiphase systems, influencing phenomena from sea ice dynamics to planet formation. Ignoring interfacial energy can oversimplify complex physical and chemical processes across various scales.
Area of Science:
- Physics and Chemistry of Matter
- Thermodynamics and Phase Transitions
Background:
- Interfacial energy and surface area are critical variables in multiphase systems.
- Often, interfacial effects are overlooked in practical applications, leading to simplified models.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the theory of phase transitions and explore systems where surface effects dominate.
- To discuss scenarios where bulk and surface behaviors interact significantly.
Main Methods:
- Review of basic theory of lower-dimensional phase transitions.
- Analysis of systems dominated by surface effects in two-phase or two-component systems.
Main Results:
- Identified situations where bulk behavior is governed by surface effects.
- Explored interactions between bulk and surface behavior in diverse systems.
Conclusions:
- Interfacial energy plays a vital role in multiphase systems, impacting phenomena from sea ice to protoplanetary formation.
- Understanding these interactions is key to accurately modeling complex physical and chemical processes across scales.
Related Concept Videos
02:31Phase Transitions
22.9K
Whether solid, liquid, or gas, a substance's state depends on the order and arrangement of its particles (atoms, molecules, or ions). Particles in the solid pack closely together, generally in a pattern. The particles vibrate about their fixed positions but do not move or squeeze past their neighbors. In liquids, although the particles are closely spaced, they are randomly arranged. The position of the particles are not fixed—that is, they are free to move past their neighbors to...
22.9K
02:33Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition
19.9K
Some solids can transition directly into the gaseous state, bypassing the liquid state, via a process known as sublimation. At room temperature and standard pressure, a piece of dry ice (solid CO2) sublimes, appearing to gradually disappear without ever forming any liquid. Snow and ice sublimate at temperatures below the melting point of water, a slow process that may be accelerated by winds and the reduced atmospheric pressures at high altitudes. When solid iodine is warmed, the solid sublimes...
19.9K
02:39Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing
14.8K
Heating a crystalline solid increases the average energy of its atoms, molecules, or ions, and the solid gets hotter. At some point, the added energy becomes large enough to partially overcome the forces holding the molecules or ions of the solid in their fixed positions, and the solid begins the process of transitioning to the liquid state or melting. At this point, the temperature of the solid stops rising, despite the continual input of heat, and it remains constant until all of the solid is...
14.8K
02:39Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation
20.8K
The physical form of a substance changes on changing its temperature. For example, raising the temperature of a liquid causes the liquid to vaporize (convert into vapor). The process is called vaporization—a surface phenomenon. Vaporization occurs when the thermal motion of the molecules overcome the intermolecular forces, and the molecules (at the surface) escape into the gaseous state. When a liquid vaporizes in a closed container, gas molecules cannot escape. As these gas phase molecules...
20.8K
01:14Fundamental Attribution Error
13.7K
According to some social psychologists, people tend to overemphasize internal factors as explanations—or attributions—for the behavior of other people. They tend to assume that the behavior of another person is a trait of that person, and to underestimate the power of the situation on the behavior of others. They tend to fail to recognize when the behavior of another is due to situational variables, and thus to the person’s state. This erroneous assumption is...
13.7K
02:39Phase Diagrams
49.9K
A phase diagram combines plots of pressure versus temperature for the liquid-gas, solid-liquid, and solid-gas phase-transition equilibria of a substance. These diagrams indicate the physical states that exist under specific conditions of pressure and temperature and also provide the pressure dependence of the phase-transition temperatures (melting points, sublimation points, boiling points). Regions or areas labeled solid, liquid, and gas represent single phases, while lines or curves represent...
49.9K