Sublimation is the process of a substance transitioning directly from the solid to the gas state, without passing through the liquid state). This is an endothermic process that occurs at temperatures and pressures below a substances triple point in its phase diagram, which corresponds to the lowest pressure at which the substance can exist as a liquid). The reverse process of sublimation is deposition or desublimation, in which a substance passes directly from a gas to a solid phase).
Sublimation has also been used as a generic term to describe a solid-to-gas transition (sublimation) followed by a gas-to-solid transition (deposition) ). While vaporization from liquid to gas occurs as evaporation from the surface if it occurs below the boiling point of the liquid, and as boiling with the formation of bubbles in the interior of the liquid if it occurs at the boiling point, there is no such distinction for the solid-to-gas transition which always occurs as sublimation from the surface).
Sublimation has various applications, including sublimation printing, which is a process of printing that involves printing onto a special sheet of paper and then transferring that image onto another material, usually polyester or a polyester mix. The ink is then heated until it disintegrates into the fabric, resulting in a long-lasting print.
