Why does a solid room air freshener lose volume and mass?

Answer 1

When you open a solid air freshner, the solid slowly loses mass and volume due to sublimation. Sublimation occurs when the surface particles of a solid gain enough energy to form a gas. Since solids are closely packed together and have a definite shape and volume and gases have no definite volume, when the solid air freshner sublimates, it causes the solid to lose shape and volume to turn into gas.

Answer 2

When exposed to air, the chemical of the air freshener literally "evaporates", through a process called "sublimation" -- which is when a material changes directly from a solid state to a gaseous state without first becoming a liquid.

Molecules of the air freshener are moving from the solid freshener literally into the air, where they do their work. When you smell the freshener, even at a distance from the solid, that is your nose picking up those molecules from the air.

If you've every watched a chunk of "dry ice" you will notice the same thing: over time the chunk gets smaller and smaller, but it doesn't really melt -- there is never any "dry ice liquid" -- it just evaporates directly from solid form into the air.

Answer 3

Yes it should. Small parts of it go into the air, so you can smell it.

Answer 4

They're not truly solid - they are usually a gel. The gel loses volume & mass over time by the evaporation of water and other liquids from the mixture.

Answer 5

Air fresheners contain compounds with low volatility.

Answer 6

evaporation