Evaporation is a concept in the field of Physics, which refers to the act of evaporating, that is, it is the reduction of a liquid to a vapor state.
Originating from the Latin term evaporate, and according to Physics, evaporation is the slow passage of a substance that is in the liquid state to the gaseous state.
Evaporation occurs because molecules on the surface of the liquid escape to the outside. The energy needed for the liquid to evaporate is obtained from the liquid itself and the container that surrounds it.
In the specific case of water, evaporation does not only occur when the boiling point is reached (with a pressure of 1 atm). Water is constantly evaporating, with molecules on the surface constantly evaporating and condensing.
THE evaporation of water and alcohol occurs at very different speeds. If two glasses are left under the same atmospheric conditions and temperature, one with water and the other with alcohol, it is possible to see that the alcohol vaporizes and "disappears" much faster.
THE condensation it consists of the inverse process of evaporation, that is, it is the transition of a substance from the vapor state to the liquid state.
The average per year of water evaporation on the Earth's surface is equal to the amount of precipitation.
The verb to evaporate can also be used figuratively, to express something that disappears. Ex: Our love was beautiful, but it just evaporated.
Evaporation, boiling and heating
There are three phenomena responsible for the passage of a liquid from a liquid to a gaseous state: evaporation, boiling and heating.
Evaporation is a gradual and slow process, which occurs only on the surface of the liquid and without visual manifestation.
At boiling, the transition of the liquid to the gaseous state occurs thanks to an increase in temperature, which accelerates vaporization. In this case, it is possible to verify the formation of bubbles.
Heating is the fastest type of vaporization, and it happens when a liquid is subjected to a temperature higher than its boiling point temperature. In these cases, vaporization is almost instantaneous.
Evotranspiration
Evotranspiration is a concept created by the American climatologist and geographer Charles Warren Thornwaite, referring to the evaporation of water in liquid or solid state thanks to the sun's rays. It also consists of the loss of water from plants through transpiration. These two processes take place simultaneously.