Superheated Steam-Water Burning Paper (Jennifer Kim)

• • PS3.A: Definitions of Energy At the macroscopic scale, energy manifests itself in multiple ways, such as in motion, sound, light, and thermal energy. (HS-PS3-2) (HS-PS3-3)

• PS3.B: Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer

  • Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but it can be transported from one place to another and transferred between systems. (HS-PS3-1),(HS-PS3-4)

Questioning Script

Prior knowledge & experience:

1. Heating Curve

2. Kinetic Energy and Temperature

Root question:

1. What happens when steam gets hotter and hotter? How much energy does steam have at 100 C as compared to 200 C?

Target response:

1. As steam get hotter, the average kinetic energy of the molecule gets higher, therefore the temperature gets higher as well. In fact, the temperature of the steam can get so high, that it will have enough energy to burn paper which burns at 232 C (451 F)

Common Misconceptions:

1. Water puts out fires. Water cannot start fires.

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