Question

Water as ice has a cooling effect, whereas water as steam may cause severe burns. Explain.

Answer 1

Water as ice has a cooling effect, whereas water as steam may cause severe burns because the latent heat of steam is more as compared to water.

• When the temperature is decreased to 0°C, water is converted into ice.
• In the case of ice, the water molecules have lower energy.
• On contact with the skin, the water molecules absorb energy from the body and thus provide a cooling effect.
• When heat is supplied to the water, it gets converted into steam at 100°C.
• In the case of steam, the water molecules have higher energy.
• The high energy of water molecules in steam is transformed into heat and may cause burns.
• Hence, water as steam may cause severe burns while water as ice has a cooling effect.