Condensate is strictly a liquid substance, not a gas. By definition, the term condensate refers to the physical product that results when a gas or vapor loses thermal energy and undergoes a phase transition into liquid form. While the precursor to condensate is always a gas or vapor, the noun condensate itself exclusively describes the resulting liquid phase. For example, in residential air conditioning systems, water vapor in the air is a gas, but once it touches the cold evaporator coil and turns into water droplets, it becomes liquid condensate that drips into the drain pan. Similarly, in the oil and gas industry, hydrocarbon condensate starts as a vapor underground due to extreme reservoir temperatures and pressures, but once it is extracted to the surface and cools under normal atmospheric conditions, it liquefies into a light liquid hydrocarbon. Therefore, regardless of whether you are examining atmospheric water, industrial steam systems, or petroleum extraction, condensate is always classified as a liquid.
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