Question

Explain why:

Burns caused by steam are more severe than burns caused by boiling water.

Answer 1

Burns caused by steam are more severe than burns caused by boiling water because of high specific latent heat of condensation. 2268 J/g of heat is released when 1 g of steam condenses to form 1 gm of water.

Due to the high specific latent heat of solidification of water, rivers and lakes do not freeze easily.