Latent Heats

• When a substance changes from one state to another, latent heat is added or released in the process.

• Latent heat: the energy required to change from one state to another at constant temperature

• Consider the water substance: all three phases of water (vapor, ice, and liquid) can be present at the same time

• in a thunderstorm, for example, water is changing phases on a continual basis, therefore, latent heat is added or released on a continual basis