Answers.com > Wiki Answers > Categories > Science > Is the boiling point of water always the same?

Is the boiling point of water always the same?

In: Science, Temperature [Edit categories]

Answer:

No. Though water boils at 100 degrees Celsius or 212 degrees Fahrenheit, it does so at sea level. But up a mountain where the air pressure is lower, water will boil at a lower temperature.

We don't want to beat this up, but when we specify the boiling point of water, it is understood to be at "standard pressure" so there is no confusion. Standard pressure per IUPAC is an absolute pressure of 100 kPa, or 14.504 psi. It's a bit more per NIST.

Because of the lower boiling point of water, cooking at high altitudes is an art; things cook differently. Anyone with some experience in the kitchen has seen a few recipes corrected for altitude. Pasta, rice and the like take a bit longer to cook at altitude because the boiling water isn't as hot as the boiling water at sea level. It's that lower pressure thing at work. If you were cooking in, say, Denver, Colorado, you'd notice a difference. Denver has the Mile-High City for a nickname because it's official elevation is 5280 feet.

If you've never seen the demonstration showing warm water boiling when the container it is placed in has the air pumped out of it to lower the pressure, you need to check it out. YouTube has vids, and a link to one of them is below.

Contributor:

Aggie80

First answer by ID1164801802. Last edit by Quirkyquantummechanic. Contributor trust: 3693 [recommend contributor ]. Question popularity: 9 [recommend question].

[report abuse]

Sources and related links: [Edit]

YouTube: Warm water boiling in a vacuum

Can you answer these Science questions?

	What do you mean by resistivity of a conductor?	Answer it!
	What is the specific heat capacity of fermenting beer?	Answer it!
	How does wind and water cause weathering?	Answer it!
	What makes some things elastic?	Answer it!
	Do astronauts eat bagged peanuts in space?	Answer it!

Relevant answers:

Why the boiling point of water same as freezing point of water?
It is not. The boiling point of water (at standard pressure) is 100 deg C while the freezing point is 0 deg C. 100 is not the same as 0!
Is the boiling point of distilled water the same the boiling point of as tap water?
The boiling point of tap water is higher than that of distilled water because tap water contains many minerals and bacteria that have higher boiling points than of water in its natural state and thus...
Does oil and water have the same boiling point?
No, water and oil do not have the same boiling point. Water's boiling point is 100 degrees Celsius or 212 degrees Fahrenheit. There is no one type of oil, so you would have to specify which. I'll...
Is the boiling point of a substance always the same as the melting point?
The melting point is the same as the freezing point; however, the boiling point is not the same as the melting point.
Is the boiling point of water the same for different amounts of water?
yes. no matter the amount of the water, it must still reach 212 degrees Farenheit to boil at sea level. The boiling point is the temperature, not the amount.