Nanoscale insights on the freezing front propagation and ion behaviors during seawater freezing

Zhao, Canjun; Lin, Yukai; Wu, Xiaomin; Zhang, Xuan; Chu, Fuqiang

doi:10.1016/j.apsusc.2023.158499

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…4D (see Supplementary Movie 4 ), shortly after the addition of water molecules, ice growth appears in the stable brine film (black dashed circle at 450 ns). According to recent calculations 53 , added water molecules rapidly reduce the concentration of the brine film, causing a decrease of the interfacial free energy between ice and solution at a constant system temperature; therefore, new ice begins to grow from the existing frozen surface. During new ice growth, the salt concentration of the brine film fluctuates around 16%, especially in the later stage (Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interfacial ice sprouting during salty water droplet freezing

Chu,

Li,

Zhao

et al. 2024

Nat Commun

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Icing of seawater droplets is capable of causing catastrophic damage to vessels, buildings, and human life, yet it also holds great potential for enhancing applications such as droplet-based freeze desalination and anti-icing of sea sprays. While large-scale sea ice growth has been investigated for decades, the icing features of small salty droplets remain poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that salty droplet icing is governed by salt rejection-accompanied ice crystal growth, resulting in freezing dynamics different from pure water. Aided by the observation of brine films emerging on top of frozen salty droplets, we propose a universal definition of freezing duration to quantify the icing rate of droplets having varying salt concentrations. Furthermore, we show that the morphology of frozen salty droplets is governed by ice crystals that sprout from the bottom of the brine film. These crystals grow until they pierce the free interface, which we term ice sprouting. We reveal that ice sprouting is controlled by condensation at the brine film free interface, a mechanism validated through molecular dynamics simulations. Our findings shed light on the distinct physics that govern salty droplet icing, knowledge that is essential for the development of related technologies.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%