Cool: Water Now Freezes at Room Temperature

Water can now freeze at room temperature by introducing a different ice-nucleating material—a material foundation that allows ice to form. Researchers from the Centre d'Investigació en Nanociència i Nanotecnologia have found a means to trigger ice formation at far higher temperatures than water's usual freezing point in the form of a mineral called "Frankdicksonite," or barium fluoride (BaF2).

Conventional knowledge on ice formation say that hexagonal structures similar to that of natural snow and ice were the best candidates to condensation and freezing. Frankdicksonite has the desired hexagonal structure, but it was a less-than-ideal ice-nucleating material. However, when BaF2 crystals have surface defects, its ability to trigger ice formation greatly improves. Tiny two-dimensional icy patches appear at the surface defects even under normal ambient temperatures.

The research team is currently working on a new kind of synthetic, environmentally friendly material that spurs ice formation at higher temperatures based on this research. Later on they hope to create what they call “intelligent surfaces” that can manipulate water in specific ways.

Via PopSci