Properties Of
Water
High specific heat as well as freezing & expansion make water unique
Temperature
High Specfic Heat:
Did you know?: High specific heat capacity contributes to waters ability to be in liquid form at room temperature and allows earths biosphere to be composed primarily of water.
FACT: "It takes 540 cal to evaporate 1 g of water compared to 237 cal/g for ethanol and 59 cal/g forchloroform. This helps in evaporative cooling for bothanimals and plants during the hot weather." - Dr. Sathasivan, The Univeristy of Texas at Austin
Freezing & Expansion:
Did you know? :Water freezing and expanding contribues to the entirety of the north pole as it is compeltely made of ice. Waters ability to expand when it is frozen is a unique characteristic as water becomes less dense as it solidifies into ice allowing it to float.
FACT: "Water is densest at 4oC and it expands during freezing. The H-bonds between water molecules in ice keep each molecule farther apart from one ther compared to liquid water. Since ice is lighter than water, it floats on the surface to keep the water below warmer, thus providing a favorable environment for aquatic organisms to live under cold conditions." - Dr. Sathasivan, The University of Texas at Austin
Did you know?
Ice floats on water due to Hydrogen bonds that cause water particles to be farther apart in solid form than in liquid form
Unlike most other substances where density decreases as entropy increases, ice does the opposite which allows for the sustanability of life.
These bonds from a crystal lattice structure and are the basis of ice being 9% less ense than water
this water property allows a layer of ice to form over bonds of water to maintain an internal temperature and sustain life in cold, harsh temperatures.