Factors Affecting Evaporation

Factors affecting evaporation
 The higher the temperature, the faster water will evaporate.
 The lower the temperature, the slower water will evaporate.

Factors affecting
evaporation  Increase kinetic energy of molecules
 More surface molecules overcome the force of attraction

 Temperature
 The units of temperature used in evaporation analyses are
degrees Fahrenheit, degrees Celsius, and degrees Kelvin.
The temperature of water in bowl A has increased because of

the lamp shining above it. Thus,
evaporation takes place at a much faster rate in bowl A than
bowl B.
 The vapor content of the air mass overlying a body of water is an important
determinant of evaporation rates.
Factors affecting  The molecules of water in the air mass exert a pressure on the free water
evaporation surface. As the vapor pressure of the overlying air mass increases, the rate
of evaporation from the water body will decrease.
 The more there is water vapor in the air, the more time it takes for the water
to get evaporated.
 Humidity
 It is a common experience that evaporation is greater in summer and at mid-
day than in winter and at night.
Bowl A is placed in a container and it is covered with a lid. As the water

evaporates into water vapour, it takes up the space inside the container. Soon,
there is a lot of water inside the container. This is referred to as humidity. When
humidity is high, water is not able to evaporate as quickly as before. Therefore,
evaporation takes place at a much faster rate in bowl B than bowl A.
 Wind increases the kinetic energy between the water particles and the
rate at which the water gets evaporated.
Factors affecting
evaporation  Wind helps move the water vapour that forms above the water
surface.
 The more the wind blows, the greater is the rate of evaporation.
 Wind Speed  But, when the winds are light, a thin layer of air just above the
surface gets nearly saturated and results in very low evaporation.
The water vapour is removed from the surface of the water in bowl A
faster because of the presence of the fan blowing at it. Thus, evaporation
takes place at a much faster rate in bowl A than bowl B.
 The greater the surface occupied by the liquid, the greater the
number of liquid molecules present at the surface.
Factors affecting
evaporation  The larger the number of liquid molecules are at the surface,
the larger the number of molecules that will break away from
the liquid and become a gas.
 Surface Area  Since evaporation takes place from the surface of the liquid,
the greater the exposed surface area, the faster the rate of
evaporation.
The water in bowl B is poured out onto the table. With a larger
surface area, more heat and wind can assist in the evaporation of
the water when the water is on the table. Therefore, evaporation
takes place at a much faster rate on the table than in bowl A.
Factors affecting  Radiation is the transmission of thermal energy by
evaporation electromagnetic waves; radiant energy is not heat itself.
 Radiant energy can be reflected, absorbed, or

transmitted. While radiation is a determinant of
 Radiation evaporation.
Factors affecting
evaporation
• Temperature
• Humidity
• Wind Speed
• Surface Area
• Radiation
Measurements
of the different
factors for
evaporation
1. Mechanical methods:
Measurements of the Mercury in glass thermometers
different factors for
evaporation
When the thermometer is heated
the mercury expands
 Temperature
Bimetallic Thermometer
The actual movement of a

bimetal is its flexibility with one
end fixed, a straight bimetal strip
deflects in proportion to
its temperature, to the square of
its length and inversely with its
thickens.
1. Mechanical methods:
Measurements of the
Gas filed thermometers
evaporation This type depends upon the
increase in pressure of a confirm
gas (constant volume) due to
 Temperature temperature increase.
Vapour – Pressure Thermometers
At low temperatures the vapour

pressure increase for each unit
temperature charge is small, at
higher temperature the
vapour pressure change is much
greater.
2. Electrical method of temperature measurement
Measurements of the
different factors for Thermocouples
evaporation
 Temperature
It is a simple device consisting of a dissimilar metal

wires joined at their ends. When an end of each wire
is connected to a measuring instrument
thermocouples becomes an accurate and sensitive
temperature measuring device
 Temperatures can be measured relative to the freezing or boiling
Measurements of the points of water, which are 32° and 212° for the Fahrenheit scale,
respectively, and 0° and 100° for the Celsius scale, respectively.
evaporation  Temperatures in Celsius and Fahrenheit are related by
 Temperature
 The Kelvin scale pertains to an absolute scale of temperature with

the 0 point approximately -273.16"C.

Celsius to Fahrenheit
Measurements of the While traveling in Europe you come down with an illness. You only
different factors for have access to a thermometer with Celsius measurements, which tells
you that your body temperature is 37 degrees. You want to convert
evaporation this measurement to Fahrenheit.
 Temperature
Fahrenheit to Celsius
Convert a temperature of 66 degrees Fahrenheit to Celsius.

 The vapor content of the air mass overlying a body of water is an
important determinant of evaporation rates. The molecules of
Measurements of the water in the air mass exert a pressure on the free water surface. As
different factors for the vapor pressure of the overlying air mass increases, the rate of
evaporation evaporation from the water body will decrease. The vapor
pressure, denoted as , is the difference in the pressure with and
without the vapor (that is, the partial pressure of the water vapor in
 Humidity the air mass).
 If water continues to evaporate from the free water surface, the

overlying air will become saturated. The pressure exerted when the
overlying air is saturated with vapor is called the saturated vapor
pressure, which is denoted as . The saturated vapor pressure is a
function of the temperature; values of e, are given in Table 14-1.
 The ratio of the actual vapor pressure to the saturated vapor

pressure is called the relative humidity, .
 Dew Point Temperature – This temperature scales with the amount

of water vapor. As more water vapor enters a volume, the dew
point goes up.
FORMULA:
Measurements of the NOTATIONS:

evaporation Relative humidity
Vapor pressure
Saturated vapor pressure
 Humidity
 Vapor pressure is commonly expressed in units of bars, millibars
(mb), inches of mercury (in. Hg), or millimeters of mercury (mm
Hg).
 The following are appropriate conversion factors:

Valuesof saturated vapor
pressure at a given
temperature
EXAMPLE #1:
Measurements of the
If the vapor pressure of an air mass is 0.27 in. Hg and the saturated
different factors for vapor pressure is 0.36 in. Hg, find relative humidity.
evaporation
GIVEN: REQ’D:
 Humidity
SOL’N:
EXAMPLE #2:
On a day when the temperature is 17°C and the relative humidity is

Measurements of the 62%, what is the vapor pressure deficit in pounds per square inch?
evaporation GIVEN: REQ’D:
 Humidity SOL’N:
TABLE HUMIDITY.pptx
 The wind speed is used as a measure of the air mass movement.
Measurements of the
 The magnitude of the wind speed is measured with an
different factors for anemometer and the direction with a wind vane.
evaporation
 Wind Speed
 For highly turbulent air in which local gusts of wind cause high
measured values of wind speed, the actual air mass movement may
not be properly indicated by the wind speed.
 While wind speed is a common input to many methods of
Measurements of the estimating evaporation rates, the height at which it is
different factors for measured must usually be specified.
evaporation
 The wind speed varies with the height above the water
 Wind Speed surface.
 The variation in wind speed with height can be represented

by the following relationship:
 The relationship of the above equation is sometimes

referred to as the power law.

Measurements of the FORMULA:
evaporation
 Wind Speed NOTATIONS:
Wind speed @ a height above the surface (mi/hr)

Height above the surface (ft)
Wind speed @ a height of anemometer (mi/hr)

Height of the anemometer (ft)
Empirical constant
EXAMPLE:
Consider the case where a wind speed of 11 mi/hr is measured by an
anemometer at a height of 2 ft. Find the wind speed at the height of 0.5ft, 1ft,
Measurements of the and 5ft.
evaporation GIVEN: FIND:
mi/hr
 Wind Speed ft if
SOL’N:
@ Z = 0.5ft @ Z = 1ft @Z = 5ft

V = 8.9mi/hr V = 9.9mi/hr V = 12.6mi/hr
Measurements of the  While radiation is a determinant of evaporation, it is more
different factors for costly to measure than temperature, and since temperature and
evaporation radiation are highly correlated, most methods for estimating
evaporation rates use temperature as an input variable rather
than radiation.
 Radiation
 Surface Area can be measured with a lot of available methods.
 Using the traditional method of using meter stick or meter tape.
 Surface Area  Use of electronic/optical instrument used for surveying such as

total station (TS) or total station theodolite (TST).

Factors Affecting Evaporation

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Factors Affecting Evaporation

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Factors Affecting Evaporation

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Factors affecting evaporation

 The higher the temperature, the faster water will evaporate.

 The lower the temperature, the slower water will evaporate.

 More surface molecules overcome the force of attraction

The temperature of water in bowl A has increased because of

Bowl A is placed in a container and it is covered with a lid. As the water

 Radiant energy can be reflected, absorbed, or

The actual movement of a

Vapour – Pressure Thermometers

At low temperatures the vapour

It is a simple device consisting of a dissimilar metal

 The Kelvin scale pertains to an absolute scale of temperature with

Convert a temperature of 66 degrees Fahrenheit to Celsius.

 If water continues to evaporate from the free water surface, the

 The ratio of the actual vapor pressure to the saturated vapor

 Dew Point Temperature – This temperature scales with the amount

Measurements of the NOTATIONS:

 The following are appropriate conversion factors:

On a day when the temperature is 17°C and the relative humidity is

 The variation in wind speed with height can be represented

 The relationship of the above equation is sometimes

 Wind Speed NOTATIONS:

Wind speed @ a height above the surface (mi/hr)

Wind speed @ a height of anemometer (mi/hr)

@ Z = 0.5ft @ Z = 1ft @Z = 5ft

 Using the traditional method of using meter stick or meter tape.

 Surface Area  Use of electronic/optical instrument used for surveying such as

You might also like