the transition of a substance from the crystalline state directly into the gaseous state without melting; it occurs with the absorption of heat (first-order phase transition).
Sublimation is a type of vaporization and is possible over the entire range of temperatures and pressures at which the solid and gaseous phases coexist. The energy required for sublimation is called the heat of sublimation, or latent heat of sublimation. The relationship between the heat of sublimation, the saturation vapor pressure above the solid, and the temperature under equilibrium conditions is given by the Clausius-Clapeyron equation. Sublimation of metal crystals leads to the formation of mon-atomic vapors. Ionic crystals, upon evaporation, often form polar molecules in the gaseous phase. Molecular crystals form vapors consisting of molecules.
The main kinetic characteristic of sublimation is the rate of sublimation, which is the mass of a substance that sublimes per unit time. The dependence of the limiting rate of sublimation of substances on the temperature and the properties of the gaseous phase is the basis for selection of materials for heat-shielding of spacecraft. Sublimation with the subsequent growth of pure crystals in a gaseous medium is widely used for the purification of solids.
in psychology, the psychological process by which the energy of affective drives is transformed and transferred to goals of social action and cultural creativity. The concept of sublimation was introduced by S. Freud in 1900. In Freudian psychoanalysis, sublimation is viewed as one form of transformation of a drive—such as the libido—and as the opposite of repression. In social psychology, sublimation is associated with the processes of socialization. The problems of sublimation are a subject of special study in such areas as child psychology, sports psychology, and the psychology of creativity.