I need some clarifications on the precise definitions and scope of latent heat. My textbook defines latent heat as the amount of energy absorbed or releases during a phase change process. So if I have a pot of liquid water and I vaporize it completely, then the latent heat is simply the energy I had to put into the system to completely vaporize the water? What if I only vaporize half of the liquid water? Would the latent heat be the energy I had to put into the system in order for that to happen or does latent heat not apply to this situation because not all of the water is vaporized?
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