downquark1
26-11-2003, 13:48
Anyone want to post an answer to an everyday question?
I'll go first:
Why does water expand when frozen when everything else contracts?
Also judging by the weight of the water compound it should actually by a gas at room temperature
This is because of an obscure little phemoninon in chemistry called a permanent dipole.
Bascially one part of the molecule is more negative than the other parts
http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/~chjnh/gcse/pics/water_trimer.jpeg
This causes them to be attracted to each other at certain angles
https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2003/11/2.gif
When the temperature is below 0˚C they lock together in a strange hexagonal shape (this is called a hydrogen bond)
http://www.mrs.umn.edu/~goochv/CellBio/lectures/water/Image126.gif
This is apposed to other chemicals that 'freeze' solid in a nice stacks
http://forum.nthellworld.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=368
This leaves the 'ice' with less density than water.
When the temperature rises above 4˚C they gain enough energy to break free of these locks and are able to flow around each other closely. But the attraction is keeping them close together - this is liquid water. When the temperture rises above 100˚C they have enough energy to break the attraction completely and become gas (steam).
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It can be anything at all - I for one don't understand the off-side rule :D
I'll go first:
Why does water expand when frozen when everything else contracts?
Also judging by the weight of the water compound it should actually by a gas at room temperature
This is because of an obscure little phemoninon in chemistry called a permanent dipole.
Bascially one part of the molecule is more negative than the other parts
http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/~chjnh/gcse/pics/water_trimer.jpeg
This causes them to be attracted to each other at certain angles
https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2003/11/2.gif
When the temperature is below 0˚C they lock together in a strange hexagonal shape (this is called a hydrogen bond)
http://www.mrs.umn.edu/~goochv/CellBio/lectures/water/Image126.gif
This is apposed to other chemicals that 'freeze' solid in a nice stacks
http://forum.nthellworld.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=368
This leaves the 'ice' with less density than water.
When the temperature rises above 4˚C they gain enough energy to break free of these locks and are able to flow around each other closely. But the attraction is keeping them close together - this is liquid water. When the temperture rises above 100˚C they have enough energy to break the attraction completely and become gas (steam).
---------------------------------------------------
It can be anything at all - I for one don't understand the off-side rule :D