Verdampingspad

Verdampingspad (Dutch for "evaporation path") denotes the trajectory followed by a material system as a liquid phase converts to vapor under changing environmental conditions. The term is used in physics, engineering and meteorology to describe how state variables such as temperature, pressure, humidity, enthalpy and mass fraction evolve during evaporation.

In practice a verdampingspad can be represented on phase diagrams, pressure–temperature plots or psychrometric charts. On such diagrams the path illustrates the sequence of equilibrium or non-equilibrium states reached as evaporation proceeds, and it helps visualise coupling between heat and mass transfer. In air–water systems the evaporation path often shows how air temperature and relative humidity change when water evaporates into a moving airstream.

Factors that shape a verdampingspad include ambient temperature and pressure, vapor pressure of the liquid, air velocity, surface area, presence of solutes, and heat supply or removal. Different operating regimes — for example near-equilibrium evaporation, forced convective evaporation, or evaporative cooling with limited heat input — produce distinct paths.

Applications of the concept appear in HVAC design, drying technology, chemical process engineering, meteorology and environmental modelling. Analysing a verdampingspad supports energy and mass balance calculations, optimization of evaporators and dryers, and prediction of atmospheric humidity changes.