Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 3 July 1970:
Vol. 169. no. 3940, pp. 48 - 52
DOI: 10.1126/science.169.3940.48
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Articles

Anomalous Water: Characterization by Physical Methods

S. W. Rabideau 1 and A. E. Florin 1

1 University of California, Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87544

Anomalous water samples have been prepared in fused quartz capillaries from pure water in an unsaturated atmosphere. In agreement with observations of other investigators, water prepared in this manner, after concentration, exhibited an increased viscosity, a lowered vapor pressure, a phase separation at low temperatures, an index of refraction of 1.48 or greater, and a depression of the temperature of maximum density. However, electron microprobe examination indicated that a significant weight fraction of these concentrated anomalous water residues consists of sodium, boron, and oxygen. The presence of about 6 percent boron was also confirmed through neutron activation analyses and by mass spectrometric measurements. A parallel is drawn between the similar physical properties of anomalous water and highly concentrated sodium tetraborate solutions. The possibility of polymorphism in liquid water should be accepted only with serious reservations.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Hydrogen-Bond Stereochemistry and "Anomalous Water".
B. Kamb (1971)
Science 172, 231-242
   PDF »
Polywater or Sodium Acetate?.
W. M. Madigosky (1971)
Science 172, 264-265
   Abstract »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)