Particle model and mass conservation
Particle model and mass conservation

A change of state happens when a substance moves between solid, liquid and gas without becoming a new substance. In the particle model, solids have particles close together in a regular arrangement, liquids have close but random particles, and gases have particles far apart and moving freely.
Step-by-step lessons on OCR GCSE Physics Changes of state. Each one builds up to exam-style questions. Paper 2 and Paper 4 include synoptic questions that draw on Topics P1–P4, so revisit earlier topics before final exams rather than treating each paper as self-contained.