States of Matter Lab

About this simulation

A container sits on a plate that can heat or cool it, with a thermometer inside and a zoom lens showing the particles. Melt ice into water and boil it into steam, cool it back down, try chocolate and iron, take the lid off, and follow the heating curve with its flat steps.

What students can explore

Why does the temperature stop rising while ice melts?
What do the particles do when water boils?
Why does chocolate melt in your hand but iron does not?
Where does the water go when the lid is off?

Learning objectives

1Describe how particles are arranged and move in solids, liquids and gases.
2Name the changes of state: melting, freezing, boiling, evaporating and condensing.
3Explain why the temperature stays the same while a substance melts or boils, and why the mass stays the same in a closed container.

Questions teachers ask

Why does the temperature stay the same while ice melts?

The heat is busy breaking particles free from their pattern instead of making them move faster. Once all the ice has melted, the temperature starts to rise again. The same happens at the boiling point.

Where does the water go when it boils away?

It becomes steam, a gas, and spreads into the air. With the lid on, the steam stays in the container and condenses back into water, so the mass stays the same. With the lid off, the mass drops, but nothing vanishes.

Why do different materials melt at different temperatures?

Their particles are held together more or less strongly. Chocolate melts at about 34 °C, just below body temperature, while iron needs 1,538 °C.

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