Name: ______________________________________ Date: ________________________

Student Exploration: Phase Changes

Vocabulary: altitude, boil, boiling point, freeze, freezing point, gas, liquid, melt, melting point,
phase, solid

Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

1. A family from Minnesota turns off the heat and flies to Florida for a winter holiday. When they
come home, all of their water pipes have burst. What do you think happened?

I think what happened is the temperature that was heating up the pipes lowered, resulting in
the energy decreasing______________________________________

2. Spaghetti takes about 9 minutes to cook at sea level, but about 14 minutes in the
mountains. Why do you think this is so?

_Because water at sea level is naturally warmer than mountain water. The molecules
released into the
air_______________________________________________________________________
_

_________________________________________________________________________

Gizmo Warm-up
In the Phase Changes Gizmo, select the Micro view and
set the Ice volume to 50 cc. Click Play ( ) and observe
molecules in the solid (ice), liquid (water), and gas (air)
phases.

1. In which phase(s) are the molecules held rigidly together?

_In the freezing phase, because they have a strong

2. In which phase(s) do the molecules move freely?

In

3. In which phase(s) are the molecules held in a defined shape? In freezing phase

4. In which phase(s) do the molecules take the shape of their container? In Liquid phase
_________________________________________________________________________
 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity A:
Click Reset ( ) and select Macro view.
Phase changes Set the Water temperature to 10 C.
Set the Ice volume to 0 cc. !

Question: How is temperature related to phase changes?

1. Predict: Based on your prior knowledge, predict the following:

A. At what temperature will water change from a liquid to a solid (freeze)? __0 degrees
celsius

B. At what temperature will water change from a solid to a liquid (melt)?At 0 degrees
celsius

C. At what temperature will water change from a liquid to a gas (boil)? at 100 degrees
celsius

2. Investigate: Use the Gizmo to explore phase changes. Use the Add/remove heat energy
slider to control the water temperature. Record your observations in your notes, then answer
the questions below:

A. At what temperature does water freeze? 0 degrees This is the freezing point.

B. At what temperature does ice melt? at 0 degrees This is the melting

C. At what temperature does water boil? at 100 degrees This is the boiling
point.

3. Observe: Set up the Gizmo to observe freezing. What do you notice about the temperature

while the water is in the process of freezing? It stays at 0 degrees celsius while the ice melts

away

4. Explore: Use the Gizmo to investigate melting and boiling. Does the temperature change

while either of these phase changes is occurring? When melting occurs, the temperature of

the water stays the same

5. Interpret: Select the GRAPH tab to see a graph of temperature vs. time. Click the button
until the whole graph is visible. What does the graph look like during a phase change?
The first part of the graph has a rapid decrease in speed, and the whole thing stays at the same
temp. (0) until the water is completely frozen. After that the water starts decreasing again at a
rapid pace
6. Extend your thinking: Why do you think the temperature does not change much during a
phase change? If possible, discuss your answer with your classmates and teacher.

I think its because the water is between two phases, so the amount of energy that goes in and
out of the water is almost the same
 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity B:
Click Reset, and select the Micro view.
Temperature and
Set Ice volume to 0 cc.
molecular motion
Set Add/remove heat energy to 0 J/s. !

Question: Why do phase changes occur?

1. Compare: Set the Water temperature to 0 C and click Play. Observe the water molecules.
Click Reset, set the Water temperature to 100 C, and click Play again.

What do you notice? ________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2. Observe: Click Reset. The mean molecular speed of the water molecules is displayed
below the container. Set the Water temperature to 0 C and Add/remove heat energy to
400 J/s. Click Play.

A. How does the mean speed of the water molecules change as they are heated?

________________________________________________________________

B. Does the mean molecular speed change as much as the temperature as the
water heats up? Explain.

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

3. Explain: How is temperature related to the motions of molecules? _____________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

4. Observe: Click Reset. Set the Water temperature to 20 C and the Ice volume to 50 cc.
Set Add/remove heat energy to 0 J/s. Click Play. How do the molecules in the liquid
interact with the molecules in the solid?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

(Activity B continued on next page)

5. Observe: Click Reset. Set the Water temperature to 100 C and the Ice volume to 50 cc.
Click Play. How does this situation compare to the previous one?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

6. Propose a theory: Based on what you have observed, explain why you think phase changes
occur. If possible, discuss your theory with your classmates and teacher.

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

7. Apply: Use your theory to explain what happens at the molecular level in each of the
following situations. Also, list the temperature at which each transition occurs.

A. Ice is warmed to the melting point. _______________________________________

__________________________________________________ Temperature: _____

B. Water is warmed to the boiling point. ______________________________________

__________________________________________________ Temperature: _____

C. Water is cooled to the freezing point. _____________________________________

__________________________________________________ Temperature: _____

8. Extend your thinking: Click Reset. Set the Water temperature to 0 C, the Ice volume to 0
cc, and Add/remove heat energy to -400 J/s. Click Play and wait until all the water freezes.

A. What volume of ice is created from 200 cc of water? _________________________

B. Why do water pipes sometimes burst in the winter? __________________________

___________________________________________________________________
 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity C:
Click Reset.
Altitude and
Set Ice volume to 0 cc.
phase changes
Set the Altitude to 5,000 meters (16,404 feet). !

Question: The altitude of a location is its vertical distance above sea level. How does
altitude affect phase changes?

1. Form a hypothesis: As altitude increases, the air pressure decreases. How do you think the
lower pressure will affect the following? (Circle your answers.)

A. Freezing point: Increase Stay the same Decrease

B. Melting point: Increase Stay the same Decrease

C. Boiling point: Increase Stay the same Decrease

2. Experiment: Use the Gizmo to find the freezing, melting, and boiling points of water at 5,000
meters (16,404 feet). Write these values below.

Freezing point: 0 degrees Melting point:0 degrees Boiling point: _______

3. Analyze: How did altitude affect the freezing, melting, and boiling points of water?

The melting and boiling both stayed the same during the whole time, both at zero degrees

however the boiling point decreased to 83 degrees

4. Challenge: Try to explain these results based on the fact that air pressure decreases with
altitude. If possible, discuss your ideas with your classmates and teacher.

The fact that air pressure decreases with altitude shows that its easier for water molecules
to break free because of the low pressure

_________________________________________________________________________

5. Apply: Why does pasta take longer to cook in the mountains? ________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

6. Apply: A pressure cooker allows food to be cooked under high pressure. Why is this useful?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________