National League for Nursing (NLN PAX) Practice Exam

When bromine transitions from a liquid state to a gaseous state, the process occurring is known as vaporization. This phase change involves the molecules in the liquid gaining enough energy to overcome the intermolecular forces that hold them together, allowing them to enter the gas phase.

Vaporization can occur through two different processes: evaporation and boiling. In both cases, the molecules transition from the liquid to the gas phase, typically as a result of increased temperature or pressure changes. The specific characteristics of bromine, a liquid at room temperature that can readily vaporize, exemplify this change effectively.

The other options do not properly describe the phase change from liquid to gas. For instance, melting refers to a solid turning into a liquid, sublimation involves a solid transitioning directly to a gas without passing through a liquid phase, and condensation is the process where a gas changes back into a liquid. Understanding these definitions clarifies why vaporization is the correct term for the transition of bromine from a liquid to a gas.