Here is What Happens When Water Hits an extremely Hot Pan at 3000 Frames Per Second [Video]

Back inside the 18th century, a German doctor called Johann Gottlob Leidenfrost described how water behaves when it hits a mass considerably hotter than its boiling point. But first, watch the 3000-frames-per-second video and spot in the event you can realize what’s happening.

As you will discover, the water doesn’t boil straight away . You have seen an analogous effect on your own kitchen. If not, here’s the experiment: Get a dry pan, make it extremely hot, and drop a little bit water on it. If the temperature is high enough, you will discover the water drops will dance around the outside for it slow before they disappear. If it’s slightly under 100 ºC, however, the water will just flatten and evaporate slowly. If it’s above 100 ºC, the water will quickly evaporate on contact. But when it gets to 190 ºC or 374 °F, the droplets won’t evaporate for a number of seconds. Of course , Sir William Fairbairn-a famed Victorian steam boiler designer-found that, while a water droplet evaporated in a hiss at 334 °F, it survived for a good 152 seconds at 395 °F (202 °C).

The reason is named the Leidenfrost Effect : When the water touches the pan, a small layer of vapor forms around it. This vapor layer isolates the droplet from the hot surface and protects it from evaporation. [ Modernist Cuisine via PopSci ]

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This post is tagged: 18th century, boiling point, german doctor, leidenfrost effect, steam boiler, victorian steam