Phases of Matter
State: Solid
Phases of Matter
State: Solid
Volume: Fixed
State: Solid
Volume: Fixed
Shape: Fixed
State: Solid
Volume: Fixed
Shape: Fixed
State: Solid
Volume: Fixed
Shape: Fixed
State: Solid
Density: A solid is about
10% more dense than a
liquid.
State: Solid
Density: A solid is about 10%
more dense than a liquid.
An exception is solid water
(ice), which is less dense than
liquid water.
State: Liquid
Volume:
State: Liquid
Volume: Fixed
State: Liquid
Volume: Fixed
Shape:
State: Liquid
Volume: Fixed
Shape: Same as its container,
or else it forms a wide,
shallow puddle.
State: Liquid
Density: Packed together, but
about 10% less dense than a
solid (except water).
State: Liquid
Particle illustration:
State: Liquid
Particle motion: Move freely
around each other.
State: Liquid
A key physical property of a
liquid is viscosity.
It means “the resistance of a
liquid to flowing.”
State: Liquid
High viscosity means it
doesn’t flow easily.
Examples of liquids with high
viscosity: (list at least 3)
State: Liquid
High viscosity means it
doesn’t flow easily.
Examples of liquids with high
viscosity:
Syrup, oil, ketchup, molasses
State: Liquid
Examples of liquids with low
viscosity: (list at least 3)
State: Gas
Volume:
State: Gas
Volume: It varies depending
on the size of the container.
State: Gas
Volume: It varies depending
on the size of the container.
Shape:
State: Gas
Volume: It varies depending
on the size of the container.
Shape: Indefinite. It takes the
shape of its container.
State: Gas
Particle position: Far apart,
with lots of empty space. Gas
is about 1000 times less
dense than liquid.
State: Gas
Particle motion: Move quickly
and freely in all directions, like
a flock of seagulls.
State: Gas
Particle illustration:
Summary
Particle illustration of 3 phases of CO2
Summary
Particle illustration of 3 phases of H2O
Postscript
A fourth phase of matter is plasma, a
partially ionized gas, in which a
certain proportion of electrons are
free rather than being bound to an
atom or molecule. Stars are mostly in
the plasma phase.