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Science
The energy required to change the state of a material is known as latent heat. The energy supplied changes the internal energy of the material (which is the energy stored inside) but does not change the temperature.
The specific latent heat is the amount of energy required to change the state of one kg of the substance with no temperature change.
To calculate this, the following equation can be used:
energy for a change of state = mass x specific latent heat
E = mL
Where E = energy (J), m = mass (kg) and L = latent heat (J/kg)
The specific latent heat has different terminology depending on the change of state that has occurred. For example, the specific latent heat of fusion refers to a change of state from solid to liquid, but the specific latent heat of vaporisation refers to a change of state from liquid to gas.