Why does sugar break down so much faster in a hot drink than it does in a cold one?
In: Chemistry
The sugar you can see actually consists of tiny, tiny sugar molecules you can’t see. These sugar molecules are attracted to each other and like cuddling up and forming the crystals you can see.
Unfortunately for the sugar molecules, the hotter they are, the harder it is for them to stay together. The energy associated with the heat makes them leave the others to give them more space to move around.
Sugar molecules, like all others, try to find their lowest energy state. Water is a charged-up slut (literally charged electrically like a small lil magnet) and likes to take them away from the other sugar molecules.
The warmer the water is, the harder it is for the sugar to stay still because the heat increases the kinetic energy of the sugar. This essentially gives the sugar the zoomies and the water is going to be successful at snagging it up and dissolving it.
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