Have you ever wondered what happens inside water droplets? Why does water change shape? Why does it freeze at some temperatures and evaporate at others? Scientists from the University of Birmingham and Sapienza Università di Roma have revealed a unique water feature that was first proposed three decades ago. It can change and transform into two different liquids in what is called a phase transition. However, this happens at extremely low temperatures.
But doesn’t water change from a solid to ice at low temperatures?
Yes, it is, and this is what has remained the biggest problem in confirming the theory that has puzzled scientists for almost 30 years. They argued that because of the hidden chemical processes inside the water, the reason why this happens still remains largely unknown regarding the liquid-liquid transition. The findings of the study which states that a characteristic feature of liquid water is the anomalous behavior of its thermodynamic response functions upon cooling, the best known of which is the maximum density at ambient pressure.
Francesco Sciortino, now a professor at Sapienza Università di Roma and co-author of the study, was part of the original team that proposed the idea of ​​a liquid-liquid phase transition in water in 1992. “In this work, we propose for the first time a view of the liquid-liquid phase transition based on ideas of network entanglement. I am sure that this work will inspire new theoretical modeling based on topological concepts,” he said in a statement. While the high-density liquid form has molecules arranged to resemble a pretzel, they are entangled, while the molecules in the low-density form mostly have rings and are therefore called unentangled.
According to the University of Birmingham, the researchers used a colloidal model of water and then two widely used molecular models of water in their simulation. Colloids are particles that can be thousands of times larger than a single water molecule. Due to their relatively larger size and therefore slower movements. “This colloidal model of water provides a magnifying glass on molecular water and allows us to unravel water’s mysteries concerning the tale of two liquids,” said Dr. Dwaipayan Chakrabarti, lead author of the article.
The goal of the research is to look inside the water and find the movements and chemistry going on at the molecular level that could be further analyzed and explored.”One by one, water is revealing its secrets! Dream how beautiful it would be if we could look inside the liquid and watch the water molecules dance, the way they blink and the way they exchange partners, restructure the hydrogen bond.” networks,” added Sciortino.
