Melting Point

Written by Clayton Maike

The melting point of a material is an intensive physical property that indicates the temperature at which the substance transforms from a solid to a liquid or vice versa.

Properties of Matter

On the most basic level, there are two types of properties of matter: chemical and physical properties. Chemical properties are classified as those that change when the substance or material undergoes a chemical reaction involving a fundamental change in the identity of the material. On the other hand, a physical property involves only a change in appearance of the material.

For example, consider the boiling a pot of water to cook a bowl of spaghetti. After sometime, the water begins to boil and form a vapor (i.e. steam). The water that boils off as steam has undergone a physical change in appearance, thus we can consider the boiling point of a substance as a physical property.

Now consider, a loaf of bread accidentally left out after a trip to the grocery store. Over the course of a week or two, mold will form on the bread indicating a chemical change in the identity of this bread molecules. The specific property that lead to this reaction would then be considered a chemical property.

Physical Properties

Physical properties are distinguished into two subgroups: intensive and extensive physical properties.

A Mathematical Model

What are the mathematical equations that allow us to model this topic. For example [math]\displaystyle{ {\frac{d\vec{p}}{dt}}_{system} = \vec{F}_{net} }[/math] where p is the momentum of the system and F is the net force from the surroundings.

A Computational Model

How do we visualize or predict using this topic. Consider embedding some vpython code here Teach hands-on with GlowScript

Examples

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Connectedness

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History

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See also

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Further reading

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References

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