Volatility (chemistry) Volatility (chemistry) In chemistry and physics, volatility is quantified by the tendency of a substance to vaporize. Volatility is directly related to a substance's vapor pressure. At a given temperature, a substance with higher vapor pressure vaporizes more readily than a substance with a lower vapor pressure. The term is primarily written to be applied to liquids; however, it may be used to describe the process of sublimation which is associated with solid substances, such as dry ice (solid carbon dioxide) and osmium tetroxide (OsO), which can change directly from the solid state to a vapor, without becoming liquid. The
Philosophy of chemistry nucleophilicity, for example. The noted philosopher of science, Karl Popper, among others, predicted as much. Several philosophers and scientists have focused on the philosophy of chemistry in recent years, notably, the Dutch philosopher Jaap van Brakel, who wrote "The Philosophy of Chemistry" in 2000, and the Maltese philosopher-chemist Eric Scerri, editor of the journal "Foundations of Chemistry" and author of "Normative and Descriptive Philosophy of Science and the Role of Chemistry in Philosophy of Chemistry", 2004, among other articles. Scerri is especially interested in the philosophical foundations of the periodic table, and how physics and chemistry intersect in relation to