. Earth Science News .
WATER WORLD
How water can split into two liquids below zero
by Staff Writers
Washington DC (SPX) Jan 27, 2017


File image.

Did you know that water can still remain liquid below zero degrees Celsius? It is called supercooled water and is present in refrigerators. At even smaller temperatures, supercooled water could exist as a cocktail of two distinct liquids. Unfortunately, the presence of ice often prevents us from observing this phenomenon. So physicists had the idea of replicating the tetrahedral shape of water molecules - using DNA as a scaffold to create tetrahedral molecules - and thus removing the interference of ice formation.

This approach allowed Simone Ciarella from the University of Rome, Italy, and his colleagues to confirm that, in theory, a dual liquid phase is possible in sub-zero water and any other liquids made of tetrahedral molecules. These results have been published in EPJ E. It is a great tale of how the underlying microscopic shape determines the overall macroscopic form.

The DNA origami technique is a kind of nanotech version of playing with Legos, assembling building blocks to create shapes at will. However, it is rather difficult to do it experimentally. The authors instead opted to use simulation to test how tetrahedral molecules - where the arms of the tetrahedron are composed of six hard cylinders - stack up and evolve over time.

The authors confirmed previously published ideas suggesting that it is the structure of the monomers and their network which makes it theoretically possible to have a dual liquid phase: one with high-density and one with low-density liquid.

This is because the resulting lattice is sufficiently empty to allow for partial interpenetration of molecules. And it is sufficiently flexible to avoid crystallisation into ice, at least on the numerical time scale used in the study.

Then, Ciarella and his colleagues studied the tetrahedral molecules themselves with a recently introduced technique, called Successive Umbrella Sampling, to calculate information related to thermodynamics.

Research paper: Towards the observation of a liquid-liquid phase transition in patchy origami tetrahedra: a numerical study. S. Ciarella, O. Gang, and F. Sciortino (2016), Eur. Phys. J. E 39: 131, DOI 10.1140/epje/i2016-16131-5


Comment on this article using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Springer
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics






Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
WATER WORLD
Mighty river, mighty filter
Washington DC (SPX) Jan 20, 2017
Huckleberry Finn wouldn't recognize today's lower Mississippi River. Massive walls separate the river from low-lying lands along the bank, an area called the floodplain. Floodplains were once the spillover zone for the river. As people settled in floodplains, the land was converted into farms, homes, and businesses. Close to 1,700 miles of walls, or levees, keep the lower Mississippi River in ch ... read more


WATER WORLD
Anguish and miracles: avalanche dramas captivate Italy

Haitians face deportation as 2010 quake reprieve expires

Archaeologists shed new light on collapse of Mayan civilization

Italy avalanche toll at 15 as helicopter crash adds to pain

WATER WORLD
New white paper reviews latest support for Redefinition of the Kilogram by 2018

A new approach to 3-D holographic displays greatly improves the image quality

Melting solid below the freezing point

New class of materials could revolutionize biomedical, alternative energy industries

WATER WORLD
How water can split into two liquids below zero

New technique quickly predicts salt marsh vulnerability

Climate change could trigger strong sea level rise

Study shows signs of hope for endangered sea turtles

WATER WORLD
Earth's orbital variations and sea ice synch glacial periods

Antarctic bottom waters freshening at unexpected rate

Arctic melt ponds form when meltwater clogs ice pores

Sea-surface temps during last interglacial period like modern temps

WATER WORLD
Crop achilles' heel costs farmers 10 percent of potential yield

How do people choose what plants to use

Intense industrial fishing

Wheat virus crosses over, harms native grasses

WATER WORLD
Can underwater sonar canons stop a tsunami in its tracks?

Researcher proposes novel mechanism to stop tsunamis in their tracks

The secret of the supervolcano

7.9 quake shakes PNG, tsunami alert rescinded

WATER WORLD
14 members of pro-govt militia killed in Mali attack

The 5 previous West African military interventions

New Gambia president demands army loyalty

Gambia army chief says troops will not fight intervention

WATER WORLD
Girls less likely to associate 'brilliance' with their own gender

Scientists find link between brain shape and personality

Study: Pueblo architects understand advanced geometry

Humans, not climate change, wiped out Australian megafauna









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.