Latent Heat of Fusion

Q1: Define Latent Heat of Fusion.

Answer:

The latent heat of fusion is the heat absorbed or released during the phase transition from a solid to a liquid, or vice versa, without a change in temperature.

Q2: How is Latent Heat of Fusion measured?

Answer:

The latent heat of fusion is typically measured using calorimetry techniques. A known mass of the substance is heated until it completely melts or cooled until it solidifies, while the temperature is monitored. The amount of heat energy absorbed or released is calculated by measuring the temperature change and using the equation 

Q = m × L

Where 

• Q is the heat energy, 
• m is the mass, and 
• L is the latent heat of fusion.

Q3: Is the Latent Heat of Fusion Same for all Substances?

Answer:

No, the latent heat of fusion is not the same for all substances. Each substance has a different value for the latent heat of fusion based on the intermolecular forces and the structure of the substance.

Q4: What are Some Examples of Substances with High Latent Heat of Fusion?

Answer:

Substances with high latent heat of fusion include water (334 kilojoules per kilogram), paraffin wax (200 kJ/kg) and lead (24 kJ/kg).

Q5: Can Latent Heat of Fusion be Negative?

Answer:

No, the latent heat of fusion cannot be negative. It is always a positive value because it represents the amount of energy required to change a substance from a solid to a liquid state. 

Q6: How does Pressure Affect Latent Heat of Fusion?

Answer:

For most of substances, pressure does not affect the latent heat of fusion. But substances that exhibit unusual phase behaviour under high pressures can have different values of latent heat of fusion for different pressure.

Latent Heat of Fusion is one of the latent heats in chemistry like the latent heat of vaporization and latent heat of sublimation. When a substance is changing its phase from liquid to solid or solid to the gas of gas to a liquid, this latent heat comes in handy to find the energy of the reaction. Latent Heat of Fusion is related to the solid-to-liquid phase change. In this article, we will explore all the topics related to the latent heat of fusion and its formula. We’ll also learn about the latent heat of fusion for various different elements as well as compounds. 

Let’s start our learning about the concept with the name “Latent Heat of Fusion”.