Scientists have created “amorphous ice,” a new type that matches the structure and density of water. Here’s all you need to know about it.
What is amorphous ice?
Scientists at the University College London (UCL) created medium-density amorphous (MDA) ice. The team led by Alexander Rosu-Finsen shook regular ice in a container containing stainless steel balls at -200°C to produce the new variant. The final product appears as granular powder sticking to the metal balls. Normally, upon freezing water crystallized with the molecules arranged into solid hexagonal structures. However, the structure can vary with the pressure and freezing speed of the water. The amorphous ice on the other hand has no regular arrangement. The study noting the discovery is published on February 2 in Science.
“Water is the foundation of all life. Our existence depends on it, we launch space missions searching for it, yet from a scientific point of view it is poorly understood,” stated Professor Christoph Salzmann. Salzmann is a professor of Chemistry at UCL. “We know of 20 crystalline forms of ice, but only two main types of amorphous ice have previously been discovered. Known as high-density and low-density amorphous ice. There is a huge density gap between them and the accepted wisdom has been that no ice exists within that density gap. Our study shows that the density of MDA is precisely within this density gap and this finding may have far-reaching consequences for our understanding of liquid water and its many anomalies,” he added.
Discovery can change our understanding of water
The study reveals that this could help in learning more about water and its properties. “Existing models of water should be re-tested. They need to be able to explain the existence of medium-density amorphous ice. This could be the starting point for finally explaining liquid water,” added Professor Salzmann. Additionally, when warmed again and recrystallized, the MDA releases a lot of heat. The research team also suggests that the amorphous ice may exist inside the ice moons of the outer solar system plants. Hence, this may be the reason behind the triggering of icequakes and tectonic motions in Ganymede, one of Jupiter‘s moons.
