Particle Changes During Freezing

Steps:

• Freezing is the phase change from liquid to solid, requiring removal of thermal energy.
• In liquids, particles move freely and are disordered; in solids, they vibrate in fixed positions, becoming ordered.
• Energy loss slows particle motion, allowing attractive forces to organize them into a lattice.
• Thus, freezing involves increased order and decreased kinetic energy.

Why B is correct:

• Freezing is an exothermic process where particles lose kinetic energy (per kinetic molecular theory), enabling them to form a more ordered solid structure.

Why the others are wrong:

• A: Particles lose energy during freezing, not gain it.
• C: Freezing increases order, not decreases it; energy is lost, not gained.
• D: Freezing increases order, not decreases it.

Final answer: B