THE HEAT OF VAPORIZATION OF WATER.
During experiments with man not all the heat leaves the body by radiation and conduction, since a part is required to vaporize the water from the skin and lungs. An accurate measurement of the heat production by man therefore required a knowledge of the amount of heat thus vaporized. One of the great difficulties in the numerous forms of calorimeters that have been used heretofore with man is that only that portion of heat measured by direct radiation or conduction has been measured and the difficulties attending the determination of water vaporized have vitiated correspondingly the estimates of the heat production. Fortunately, with this apparatus the determinations of water are very exact, and since the amount of water vaporized inside the chamber is known it is possible to compute the heat required to vaporize this water by knowing the heat of vaporization of water.
Since the earlier reports describing the first form of calorimeters were written, there has appeared a research by one of our former associates, Dr. A. W. Smith[11] who, recognizing the importance of knowing exactly the heat of vaporization of water at 20°, has made this a special object of investigation. When connected with our laboratory a number of experiments were made by Doctors Smith and Benedict in an attempt to determine the heat of vaporization of water directly in a large calorimeter; but for lack of time and pressure of other experimental work it was impossible to complete the investigation. Subsequently Dr. Smith has carried out the experiments with the accuracy of exact physical measurements and has given us a very valuable series of observations.
Using the method of expressing the heat of vaporization in electrical units, Smith concludes that the heat of vaporization of water between 14° and 40° is given by the formula
L (in joules) = 2502.5 - 2.43T
and states that the "probable error" of values computed from this formula is 0.5 joule. The results are expressed in international joules, that is, in terms of the international ohm and 1.43400 for the E.M.F. of the Clark cell at 15° C., and assuming that the mean calorie is equivalent to 4.1877 international joules,[12] the formula reads
L (in mean calories) = 597.44 - 0.580T
With this formula Smith calculates that at 15° the heat of vaporization of water is equal to 588.73 calories; at 20°, 585.84 calories; at 25°, 582.93 calories; at 30°, 580.04 calories;[13] and at 35°, 577.12 calories. In all of the calculations in the researches herewith we have used the value found by Smith as 586 calories at 20°. Inasmuch as all of our records are in kilo-calories, we multiply the weight of water by the factor 0.586 to obtain the heat of vaporization.