On Thu, 16 Jun 2005 14:08:59 -0800, Floyd L. Davidson wrote:

Winfield Hill -edu wrote:
John Fields wrote...
Floyd L. Davidson wrote:
John Fields wrote:
Floyd L. Davidson wrote:

The idea that water boils at 100C and freezes at 0C, without
some mention of pressure, has little meaning. Water can "boil"
at 0C too.

Since, by your own admission, the boiling and freezing point
temperatures of water are pressure dependent, I invite you to state
what pressure would be required to be exerted on a volume of liquid
water in order to cause it to boil at 0°C.

The answer of course is: not much.

Hmmm...

Same as the answer to: "What does Floyd L. Davidson know about
anything?".

He appears to be confusing sublimation and evaporation with boiling.

*Look* at the statement:

Water can "boil" at 0C too.

It is *correct*, as you've all been very hasty to demonstrate.
It is not so precise as to say "at 0.010C", but certainly that
value is well within the normal meaning of "0C" (what, -.5 to
+.5 C!).

Huh? The issue is not whether water can be a gas at 0C, rather can it
*boil*. Since there is nowhere in the phase diagram that the water and
gas phase touch each other at 0C, my guess is that it cannot boil at
0C, at *any* pressure. It's only a guess though. ;-)


And while sublimation might happen at that temperature too, as might
just simple evaporation, the fact that it doesn't break into a full
nucleate boiling state does *not* make what was stated wrong either.

What? Evaporation only occurs between the liquid and gas phases. I
suppose you're proposing that it somehow "tunnels" through the solid phase
at 0C? Me thinks you need to go back to high school physics.

But all of your squirming and name calling clearly does identify each of
you! I don't need to call any of you names, because *you* are providing
everyone who reads these articles with all they need to know, whether
someone actually puts a label on it or not.

Squirming? Try reading the phase diagram that has been put right in front
of your nose. Water cannot "boil" at 0C. ...not possible.

If course when *you* provide so many handy labels, you'll have to expect
readers to use exactly those when they think of you.


"Handy" labels like "gas", "liquid", "solid", "boil", "melt", and
"sublimate"? I guess you have a point. We're being *so* judgemental.
....hurt your feelings?

--
Keith