'Heat of fusion' measures the amount of energy
needed to melt a given mass of a solid
at its melting point temperature. Conversely,
it also represent the amount of energy
given up when a given mass of liquid solidifies.
Water, for example, has a heat of
fusion of 80 calories per gram. That means it
takes 80 calories of energy to melt 1 gram of ice
at 0 degrees C. into water at 0 degrees C. Heat
of fusion values differ for different materials.
Answered by: Paul Walorski, B.A. Physics, Part-time Physics Instructor
'For the sake of persons of ... different types, scientific truth should be presented in different forms, and should be regarded as equally scientific, whether it appears in the robust form and the vivid coloring of a physical illustration, or in the tenuity and paleness of a symbolic expression.'