Discuss the factors affecting evaporation.

Explanation

Following factors affect evaporation :
(i) Surface area. We know that evaporation is a surface phenomenon. If the surface area is increased, the rate of evaporation increases. For example, while putting clothes for drying up we spread them out.
(ii) Temperature. With the increase of temperature, more number of particles get enough kinetic energy to go into the vapour state.
(iii) Humidity. Humidity is the amount of water vapour present in air. The air around us cannot hold more than a definite amount of water vapour at a given temperature. If the amount of water in air is already high, the rate of evaporation decreases.
(iv) Wind speed. It is common observation that clothes dry faster on a windy day. With the increase in wind speed, the particles of water vapour mmove away with the wind, increasing the amount of water vapour in the surrounding.