Freezing point The miracle of ice cubes

If you cool a gaseous substance, you can watch the phase changes that occur. The phase changes are 

I Condensation — going from a gas to a liquid I Freezing — going from a liquid to a solid 

The gas particles have a high amount of energy, but as they re cooled, that energy is reduced. The attractive forces now have a chance to draw the particles closer together, forming a liquid. This process is called condensation. 

The particles are now in clumps (as is characteristic of particles in a liquid state), but as more energy is removed by cooling, the particles start to align themselves, and a solid is formed. This is known as freezing. The temperature at which this occurs is called the freezing point (fp) of the substance. 

The freezing point is the same as the melting point — it s the point at which the liquid is able to become a gas or solid. 

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