Chemical Engineering Basics - Engineering

Q1:

Latent heat of dry steam at atmospheric pressure is 539 Kcal/kg; which __________ with increase in the pressure of steam.

A decreases

B increases

C remains same

D may increase or decrease

ANS:A - decreases

The latent heat of dry steam decreases with an increase in the pressure of steam. This phenomenon occurs because as the pressure of steam increases, the temperature at which water vapor condenses to form liquid water also increases. This higher condensation temperature results in a decrease in the latent heat of steam, as less energy is required to convert the steam into liquid water at the higher pressure. Therefore, as the pressure of steam increases, the latent heat decreases. In summary, an increase in the pressure of steam leads to a decrease in the latent heat of dry steam.