Evaporation at the leaf surface of a plant cause what process?

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Question restatement: Evaporation at the leaf surface of a plant cause what process?

Option a: Transpiration. This option labels the process as transpiration, which is indeed the broader water loss mechanism from plant surfaces, primarily through stomata and, to a lesser extent, through the cuticle. However, the phrasing 'evaporation at the leaf surface' emphasizes the physical phase change of water at the surface, which is a component of transpiration but not the term most precisely describing the heat-related consequence.

Option b: Oxidation. Oxidation refers to electron transfer reactions in metabolism, not to water loss or surface evaporation processes in leaves. This choice mischaracterizes the phenomenon entirely.

Option c: Guttation. Guttation describes the exudation of liquid water droplets from leaf margins or tips, usually occurring at night when soil moisture is high and transpiration is low. It is not driven by evaporation from the leaf surface and is unrelated to the cooling effect discussed here.

Option d: Evaporative cooling. When water at the leaf surface undergoes phase change from liquid to vapor, it absorbs latent heat from the surrounding leaf tissue and surface. This heat absorption lowers the leaf temperature, producing evaporative cooling. This explanation directly ties the physical process (evaporation) to its thermal outcome, matching the typical reasoning behind how leaf surfaces cool.

In summary, while transpiration describes water loss, the specific consequence of evaporation at the leaf surface leading to a temperature drop is evaporative cooling. The other options either describe broader concepts (transpiration) or unrelated processes (oxidation, guttation) and do not capture the cooling effect produced by surface evaporation.

BIO 181 (001&002) FALL 2025 4G. Self-Check - Plant Transport (LO 4G.1, 4G.2, 4G.3, 4G.4)

Evaporation at the leaf surface of a plant cause what process?

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