Compared to a burn due to water at 100°C, a burn due to steam at 100°C is

Correct Option: More dangerous

To understand why a burn from steam at 100°C is more dangerous than a burn from boiling water at the same temperature, we must analyze the heat energy content of both states of water.

Both boiling water and steam can exist at the same temperature of 100°C. However, to convert liquid water at 100°C into steam at 100°C, a significant amount of heat energy must be absorbed by the water. This energy is known as the latent heat of vaporization, and for water, it is very high (approximately 2260 kJ/kg or 540 cal/g).

When steam at 100°C comes into contact with the skin, it undergoes a phase transition, condensing back into liquid water at 100°C. During this process, it releases its latent heat directly onto the skin:
$Q_{\mathrm{latent}}=mL$
After condensing, the resulting water is still at 100°C and continues to transfer heat to the skin as it cools down:
$Q_{\mathrm{sensible}}=mc\Delta T$

In contrast, boiling water at 100°C only transfers heat as it cools down (sensible heat), without the massive initial release of latent heat. Because steam transfers significantly more energy to the skin than boiling water of the same mass, it causes much more severe and deep tissue damage.