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The vapor pressure of water is the pressure exerted by molecules of water vapor in gaseous form (whether pure or in a mixture with other gases such as air). The saturation vapor pressure is the pressure at which water vapor is in thermodynamic equilibrium with its condensed state .
Water vapor has lower density than that of air and is therefore buoyant in air but has lower vapor pressure than that of air. When water vapor is used as a lifting gas by a thermal airship the water vapor is heated to form steam so that its vapor pressure is greater than the surrounding air pressure in order to maintain the shape of a ...
Vapor pressure [a] or equilibrium vapor pressure is the pressure exerted by a vapor in thermodynamic equilibrium with its condensed phases (solid or liquid) at a given temperature in a closed system. The equilibrium vapor pressure is an indication of a liquid's thermodynamic tendency to evaporate.
Vapour pressure-deficit, or VPD, is the difference (deficit) between the amount of moisture in the air and how much moisture the air can hold when it is saturated. Once air becomes saturated, water will condense to form clouds, dew or films of water over leaves. It is this last instance that makes VPD important for greenhouse regulation. If a ...
Up to 99.63 °C (the boiling point of water at 0.1 MPa), at this pressure water exists as a liquid. Above that, it exists as water vapor. Note that the boiling point of 100.0 °C is at a pressure of 0.101325 MPa (1 atm), which is the average atmospheric pressure.
Because the amount of water vapor in the air is small, relative humidity, the ratio of the partial pressure due to the water vapor to the saturated partial vapor pressure, is much more useful. Vapor pressure above 100% relative humidity is called supersaturated and can occur if the air is rapidly cooled, for example, by rising suddenly in an ...
For example, water has a critical temperature of 647 K (374 °C; 705 °F), which is the highest temperature at which liquid water can exist at any pressure. In the atmosphere at ordinary temperatures gaseous water (known as water vapor) will condense into a liquid if its partial pressure is increased sufficiently.
Vapor pressure of water vs. temperature. 760 Torr = 1 atm. If evaporation takes place in an enclosed area, the escaping molecules accumulate as a vapor above the liquid. Many of the molecules return to the liquid, with returning molecules becoming more frequent as the density and pressure of the vapor increases.