freezing water bottle experiment

Instant Freeze Water – Bottle Slam

Sharply knock a bottle of supercooled liquid water on the table and it instantly turns to slushy ice before your eyes.

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You put a plastic bottle of soda pop or water in the freezer for a few minutes to get it ice cold. It’s still a liquid when you take it out to enjoy but the second you twist the cap, the liquid instantly turns to slush! The process is amazing to watch but hard to repeat.  This is a great illustration of how supercooled liquids defy freezing even at temperatures well below their freezing points. You’ll need some ice, salt, and several unopened plastic bottles of purified water to attempt this science demo. It’s cool… below-the-freezing-point cool!

But first… If this happens to work on your very first attempt, go buy a lottery ticket! You have to be patient and understand that all of the measurements of time, ice, water, and rock salt are summaries of what has worked for others. Shoot a video of every attempt you make to document your hits and misses – and plan on several misses, too. When the ice crystals do begin to form in the water as planned, expect to hear lots of spontaneous screams and cheers coming from – you! It really is cool. Just remember: NO glass bottles!

Experiment Videos

Here's What You'll Need

Caution: do not use glass bottles, water: bottled, purified, or distilled (several bottles, refrigerated), large, deep bowl or container, crushed ice, thermometer, adult supervision, let's try it.

Nearly fill the container with ice.

Shove two refrigerated, plastic water bottles deeply into the ice. Keep them close to the center of the bowl but keep each surrounded by and buried in ice as much as possible.

Scatter a generous amount of rock salt all over the surface of the ice.

Insert the thermometer into the ice between the bottles. Monitor the temperature. Over the next half-hour, the temperature will fall slowly. Add ice and salt to the container as needed to keep the bottles buried in it. Watch that thermometer!

The temperature in the bowl needs to drop to 17℉ (-8℃). If the water gets too much colder, it may freeze prematurely.

After the water has been this cold for 10 minutes (and is still a liquid), gently remove a bottle from the ice/salt mixture. Strike the bottle sharply against the table. Ice crystals may immediately form near the top of the bottle and quickly move down through the liquid. Carefully remove the second bottle and twist open the cap. The same instant freezing will likely occur from the top down.

How Does It Work

You used salt and ice to drop the temperature in the chill mixture below the normal freezing point of water. This is called “freezing point depression.” This very cold salt water can be used to cool other water and soda samples below their normal freezing point to discover which of them can be be supercooled. You might also discover which samples freeze at their normal freezing points no matter what.

When water freezes, the molecules come together in a very orderly way and form a crystalline structure. Because of this, water molecules as ice have less energy than water molecules as liquid. That means to go from liquid water to solid water, the molecules have to lose heat energy. In other words, as supercooled water freezes when you tap it or open it, it also warms up the rest of the water. This heating may allow only ten or twenty percent of the water to freeze and that accounts for slush being in the bottle instead of it being a solid chunk. The formation of ice crystals happens very quickly but heat flows slowly in water.

When water is cooled to its freezing point, ice crystals can begin to collect in the water. Like snow flakes, these crystals need something on which to grow and they use microscopic impurities in the water or locations on the bottle to do just that. If you work with really pure water and cool it slowly to produce supercooled water as a liquid, there’s different outcome. When an impurity (e.g. an ice crystal) is added to this supercooled pure water, it speeds up the crystallization process even more. The water instantly freezes solid with no slush in it anywhere. This is called “snap freezing.”

If you supercool soda water or soda pop, there are some other factors to consider. When soda pop is produced, large quantities of additives (like sugar, colors, and flavorings) as well as carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) are pumped into water. These additives are called solutes and when solutes are added to a liquid such as water (the solvent), the freezing point of the water drops. By lowering the freezing point, soda has to reach a much colder temperature than plain water to freeze. The carbon dioxide gas in the soda is maintained only as long as the bottle is kept sealed. When the bottle is opened and you hear that “whoosh” of gas and foam rushing out of the bottle, the concentration of solutes in the water quickly goes down. The freezing point goes up and, without all those solutes, the soda freezes very quickly. Of course, all those bubbles provide places for the ice crystals to begin forming, too. You can test this by tapping a supercooled bottle of soda pop without opening it. Bubbles will form after the tap and freezing will likely occur.

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Level of Education

Post Secondary

Recommended Age

Time Required

• ~10 minutes
• ~20 minutes
• ~30 minutes
• ~45 minutes

1 day or more

Number of people

• 100 – 200 €

Supervision

Instant-Freeze Water

Meta Description

Learning Objectives

Understand how the process of supercooling works and why some liquids do not freeze when cooled below their freezing point. Understand the concept of latent heat of fusion. Introduction to the concept of ice being formed by a lattice structure of water molecules.

Crystallisation The formation of a solid in which the molecules form a highly organised and symmetric structures called crystals.

Crystalline structure

An ordered arrangement of atoms or molecules in a solid. This ordered arrangement consists of repeating patterns of molecules.

Distilled water

Water without any impurities. Impurities are removed from the water through a process known as distillation.

Latent energy

Refers to the energy released or absorbed by a thermodynamic system at a constant temperature.

Seed crystal

An initial crystal that allows for the continued process of crystallization.

Supercooled liquid

A liquid with a temperature below its freezing point but which is still in the liquid state.

Step 1 Fill two plastic water bottles with distilled water and refrigerate them overnight. Although only two water bottles are used in the experiment, placing extra bottles of water in the fridge is advisable so that the experiment can be attempted multiple times.

Fill the container with ice.

Submerge two refrigerated plastic water bottles in the ice, making sure all surfaces of the bottles are in contact with the ice.

Generously sprinkle rock salt all over the ice.

Insert a thermometer between the bottle and the ice in order to monitor the temperature of the bottle.

Carefully monitor the temperature of the bottles in the container until it drops to -8oC. If the temperature falls below -8oC, the water can freeze prematurely. During this period of observation, add extra ice and salt to the container as needed to keep the bottles submerged in the ice and salt mixture.

After the water has been at -8oC for 10 minutes, remove the bottle from the container, and note that it is still in liquid state. Strike the bottle sharply against a table and observe what happens.

Try pouring the supercooled water onto an ice-cube and see how high an ice tower you can create.

The bottles used should be made of plastic, not glass. Striking a glass bottle on a table may cause it to break and produce a health hazard.

You and a friend are hanging out on a hot day and you decide to play a prank on them. Offering your friend a bottle of water you reach into an ice bath and pull out a strangely cold bottle of water. As you are about to hand it to them you ask them if they wanted ice with their water, then strike the bottle against a hard surface. The water seems to instantly freeze right before your eye. “How did you do that?” Your friend asks, amazed!

A little bit of advice:

It is very difficult to get this experiment to work correctly the first time around and that is why this demonstration is not ideal for festivals. This experiment is impressive, but it is highly sensitive to small changes in variables, so the result can be very much hit-or-miss. To increase the likelihood of success, during the demonstration, document the amounts of ice and salt used, and take measurements of the time that bottles are submerged in the ice and salt. This can help you to keep track of the experimental conditions and if the experiment is a failure, these recordings can help you avoid repeating the mistake by changing some experimental variables, for example by increasing the amount of salt used or the time of submersion.

For how long does the water need to be supercooled? If the water is already refrigerated, it should be kept in ice for at least 10 minutes.

Why is it so difficult to get the experiment right the first time around? The success of the experiment depends on many variables; such as temperature, and the proportions of ice and salt. Small changes in these variables can lead to success or failure.

Does it only work with pure water? No, but other factors need to be considered in that case, for example the water may need to be cooled to a higher or lower temperature.

Why is the salt added to the ice? To decrease the temperature of the ice below 0oC.

Why use distilled water? Distilled water has a freezing point of 0oC. Water that is not distilled may have impurities that increase or decrease the freezing point of the water.

When water is cooled and starts to freeze, the molecules in the water come together to form a crystalline structure. The crystalline structure is what gives ice its rigidness. The water molecules in the crystalline structure have less energy than water molecules in the liquid state. This is due to the fact that in the transition from liquid to solid, energy is released as heat. This also explains why the supercooled water turns into a slush rather than a solid chunk when it freezes instantly. The heat released from the instant formation of ice prevents the formation of a solid ice block.

For ice to form as the water cools, the initial ice crystals need an object on which to grow around. In normal water, ice usually grows on microscopic impurities found in the water, however, if distilled (or very pure) water is used, it contains no such impurities. Thus, the water can be cooled below its freezing point of 0oC without actually freezing and remaining as a liquid, in a process known as supercooling. Striking the bottle against a hard surface (such as the table) makes it more likely that some of the molecules in the water move together to form a crystal structure. Once a few of the molecules join together, the crystal can grow around them. Thus, the molecules quickly join together, and the crystal structure spreads throughout, causing the water in the bottle to freeze almost instantly. ( https://www.stevespanglerscience.com/lab/experiments/instant-freeze-soda-ice/ )

The theoretical freezing point of water is 0oC, when water is cooled below this temperature, it can be expected to change state from a liquid to a solid, ice. However, in this experiment the distilled water was supercooled: its temperature was lowered below 0oC, but it remained a liquid until it was struck on a hard surface.

Heat energy plays a key role in changes of state. In the transition from solid to liquid, for example from ice to water, heat energy needs to be provided in order to break the crystal lattice in the ice. In order for a liquid to transition to a solid, it must lose heat energy through the cooling process. However, simply cooling a liquid is not enough for water molecules to arrange themselves into solid crystals, extra energy must be provided to initiate the process of crystallisation, known as the latent heat of fusion. As soon as this energy has been provided and a small crystal is formed in the liquid, the rest of the molecules in the liquid quickly rearrange themselves into a crystal structure and the water freezes to a solid. The small crystal which triggers the crystallization process is called a seed crystal. In the case of this experiment, the latent heat of fusion is provided by striking the bottle against a table. This latent heat energy is enough for the water molecules to group and form at least one seed crystal.

Salt was mixed was added into the container of ice, to help supercool the water. On its own, ice would have maintained a temperature in the region of 0oC, which would have been too high to supercool the water to -8oC. Adding salt to the water had the effect of lowering the freezing point of the ice and allowing it to maintain a cooler temperature, making it appropriate for use in supercooling. The process of lowering the freezing point of a substance is known as freezing point depression.

Applications

Heat packs are used to warm parts of the body in order to relieve pain. Some heat packs use chemical reactions that release thermal energy i.e. exothermic reaction. In some packs, supersaturated sodium acetate is heated until it melts into a liquid. As it cools it remains as a liquid until a nucleation site is created, and then the sudden crystallization of the sodium acetate releases thermal energy. ( http://materiability.com/portfolio/latent-heat-storage/ )

The concept of latent is being implemented in novel ways to improve the efficiency of heat pumps. https://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/15596_en.html

Experiment with different types of water (for example tap water or flavoured water) and observe the behaviour of the water as it freezes. https://www.stevespanglerscience.com/lab/experiments/instant-freeze-soda-ice/

Investigate the effects of cooling the distilled water to different temperatures below 0oC.

Preparation: At least 1 day

Conducting: 5 mins

Clean Up: 15 mins

Number of People

1 participant

Crushed salt Ice Large container Rock salt Several bottles of purified or distilled water Thermometer

Contributors

Additional Content

Instant Freeze Water – Bottle Slam (Beginner)

Measuring the Latent Heat of Fusion of Ice  (Intermediate)

Phase Change and Latent Heat  (Advanced)

Cite this Experiment

Vella, R., Padfield, N., & Styles, C. (2020, August 25). Instant-Freeze Water. Retrieved from http://steamexperiments.com/experiment/instant-freeze-water/

First published: August 25, 2020 Last modified: August 25, 2020

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Instant Ice Science Experiment

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This science experiment is an exciting experiment to show your child water transforming from liquid to a solid instantaneously!

The Instant Ice experiment shows the transformation from liquid to solid in an instant! When purified water is supercooled (cooled below freezing point), it will instantly turn from a liquid to a solid when it is disturbed. This could be by a jolt to the container or just adding an ice cube to it.

To make it more exciting, your child can create fun ice sculptures while pouring the supercooled water. Since it only takes a few items that you likely have on hand, this is an easy at-home experiment.

How to make the Instant Ice experiment

Supplies you will need.

For the Instant Ice experiment, you’ll need:

• Bottles of purified water
• A freezer with space to lay bottles flat

Before you start

I found that water bottles with harder plastic tended to be easier to handle than softer plastic. I used Dasani water bottles and had a much easier time than with a softer plastic bottle like Zephyrhills.

Instructions

Here is how to do the Instant Ice experiment:

Step 1: Place your water bottle(s) in the freezer on their side

I wanted to have a few water bottles in the freezer, just in case I accidentally messed up on the experiment.

It varies for everyone, but your water bottles will likely need at least 1.5 hours to get ready, likely more. Mine needed about 2.5 hours.

If, by 1.5 hours, your water bottles are not ready, check back every 15-20 minutes.

Optional (but encouraged): I also added a water bottle with tap water in it as a control. Once the tap water bottle froze and the purified water was still liquid, I knew it was ready to go.

Step 2: Carefully open the water bottle

Remember how I mentioned that a simple jolt could ignite the freeze? Since you have to hold the bottle in order to unscrew the cap, you will want to be careful about the amount of pressure you place on the bottle.

Step 3: Pour the supercooled water into the empty container

You won’t have to be as careful with this step.

Step 4: Start the freeze!

Take a piece of ice and simply touch it to the surface of the supercooled water. You won’t have to hold it for long: it should instantly activate the freeze and you will be able to see the water transform to ice!

The ice cube you added will sit on top at this point.

Get your child involved : Let your child touch the ice cube to the top of the water and ignite the freeze. They will feel like they have superpowers!

Step 5: Add water to create ice sculptures

You can do this in either container (the newly-formed ice or the container with ice cubes).

Slowly pour the water out of the water bottle and into these containers to create fun ice sculptures!

Get your child involved : Allow your child free reign over the ice sculptures. Let them get creative! There’s no right or wrong with this step.

Here’s a quick video of creating ice sculptures:

The science behind the Instant Ice science experiment

The Instant Ice experiment showcases the transformation from a liquid to a solid in an instant.

How it works

This experiment studies supercooled water, which is when the water’s temperature falls below freezing but does not actually freeze.

When water is very pure, it is difficult for ice crystals to form because they need what is called a “nucleation point” (the first step in the formation of a new thermodynamic phase) to begin freezing.

When supercooled water is disturbed (by hitting it or introducing a piece of ice, like in our experiment), it instantly turns to ice!

More chemistry experiments to try out with your child

• Fizzing lemons experiment – using lemons and baking soda to make a lemon volcano
• Homemade lava lamp – vinegar and baking soda bubble around in a container of oil
• Magnetic Slime – classic slime, but with an interactive lesson in magnets

FAQ about the Instant Ice Experiment

Does the plastic bottle have to be a harder or softer plastic.

In my opinion, plastic bottles with harder plastic allow you to handle them easier in their supercooled state than a softer plastic bottle. When I used a softer plastic bottle, I initiated the freeze accidentally every time.

Can you make instant ice with tap water?

For this experiment, it is not recommended to use regular tap water. Tap water holds contaminants that could be enough for a nucleation point, which would trigger the freeze when the water reaches the freezing point. By using purified water, you have no contaminants, which will allow your water to stay a liquid well under freezing temperatures.

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Why does water freeze instantly when you hit a bottle just out of the freezer?

There is a super cool answer to this one...

Asked by: Marc McDonald, Omagh

It is because the liquid in the bottle is supercooled - the temperature of the liquid is below its normal freezing point, but the liquid has still not turned into a solid. That's because it needs something to kick-start the freezing process and encourage a small number of the liquid molecules to get together in a regular arrangement, as they do in a crystal, instead of moving around independently as they do in the liquid.

The process is called nucleation, because it encourages the molecules in the liquid to form a crystal-like nucleus onto which others can then latch. The kick-start can be given by a piece of dust, a rough spot on the surface of a container, or the shock wave generated when you hit a bottle just out of the freezer. Shock waves from an in-built metallic 'clicker' are used in a new 'wine warmer' which contains a supercooled liquid that releases heat as it solidifies.

• Can plastic bottles be reused in the way glass bottles were in the past?
• Does the plastic debris found in bottled water affect our bodies?

Subscribe to BBC Focus magazine for fascinating new Q&As every month and follow @sciencefocusQA on Twitter for your daily dose of fun science facts.

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How to Freeze Water Instantly

Last Updated: June 20, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was reviewed by Anne Schmidt . Anne Schmidt is a Chemistry Instructor in Wisconsin. Anne has been teaching high school chemistry for over 20 years and is passionate about providing accessible and educational chemistry content. She has over 9,000 subscribers to her educational chemistry YouTube channel. She has presented at the American Association of Chemistry Teachers (AATC) and was an Adjunct General Chemistry Instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. Anne was published in the Journal of Chemical Education as a Co-Author, has an article in ChemEdX, and has presented twice and was published with the AACT. Anne has a BS in Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, and an MA in Secondary Education and Teaching from Viterbo University. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 94,449 times.

Did you know that you can cool water below its freezing point at 32 °F (0 °C) without it becoming solid? This method of instant freezing is called “supercooling.” To freeze water instantly, simply fill a bucket with water, ice, and rock salt. [1] X Research source Insert a water bottle, cool it to 17 °F (−8 °C), and then tap it against a hard surface to freeze the water.

Creating a Salt and Ice Water Mixture

• Check if your bucket is large enough by putting both water bottles in it while it’s still empty. You’ll be adding the water bottles after you create the salt and ice water mixture.

• If it hasn’t dropped below that temperature, add 1 cup (300 g) of salt and mix.

Freezing Your Water Bottles

• Don't use tap water. Ice crystals can form around impurities in tap water, which will ruin the supercooling process.

• If the water has frozen, let the bottle thaw before trying again from the beginning. [7] X Research source

• The motion of unscrewing the cap on the second bottle is enough to set off the ice crystals. [9] X Research source
• If the water doesn’t freeze, tap it more firmly. If that does not work, return it to the ice water mixture and let it cool for another 30 minutes before trying again. [10] X Research source

Community Q&A

• Getting your water bottles to freeze instantly might take a few tries. If your water bottles don't freeze instantly, try adding more salt to your ice water mixture, or cool the water bottles in the mixture for a longer period. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 1

• Never use glass bottles when freezing bottled water. Glass can cool too quickly and cause the water to freeze in the ice bath. If the water freezes at this stage, the bottle can burst. Thanks Helpful 5 Not Helpful 1

Things You'll Need

• Bucket or cooler
• 2 cups (600 g) of rock salt
• 2 16.9 fluid ounces (0.50 L) unopened plastic bottles of purified or distilled water
• Ladle or large spoon
• Thermometer

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://sciencing.com/freezing-point-water-compared-salt-solution-16047.html
• ↑ https://www.coolscience.org/instant-freeze-water-orig.html
• ↑ https://scitechinstitute.org/listing/steve-spangler-science-instant-freeze-water-bottle-slam/

About This Article

To freeze water instantly, first, create a salt and ice water mixture by packing a bucket or cooler half full of ice and adding just enough water to allow the ice cubes to move. Next, toss in 2 cups of rock salt for every 10 pounds of ice and mix with a large spoon. Once you have your mixture, let it sit for about 30 minutes, or until it gets to about 27 degrees Fahrenheit. If it doesn’t drop below that temperature, mix in another cup of rock salt. As your mixture continues to cool, pour purified or distilled water in plastic water bottles and place the bottles in your bucket without them touching each other. Avoid using tap water, since the impurities will ruin the supercooling process. Keep monitoring the temperature until it reaches about 17 degrees Fahrenheit. When it does, grab a bottle and tap it against a hard surface, as this will cause ice crystals to form at the top of the bottle and creep down to the bottom. For more tips, including how to freeze the bottles without tapping them, read on. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Cool Science Trick: Instantly Freeze Water

• August 6, 2019
• 12 Comments
• Categories: Chemistry , Physics , Podcasts , Science at Home : STEM , Videos
• Tags: #chemistry , equilibrium , homeschool , louie , Louie the science dog , phase changes , podcast , science concepts , science experiment , STEM , supercooling , superfreeze , water

COOL SCIENCE TRICK: INSTANTLY FREEZE WATER : SCIENCE AT HOME FOR KIDS

Do you want to impress your posse with a cool science trick & instantly freeze water? Okay, this isn’t a trick, it’s science. But it is cool science. And you can do this science at home! We are going to instantly freeze water. STEM science experiments at home.

My first podcast is below! It was harder for me to figure out how to record this baby than to do the experiment! In it, I explain how to instantly freeze water. I also made a video! Listen, watch, or read! Or do all three!

INSTANTLY FREEZE WATER!

It’s easy to instantly freeze water and it doesn’t involve the freezer. That’s too unreliable. I’ve tried several methods and this one works.

I’m betting that you already have what you need around the house! Stem science eperiments at home are the best.

Now comes the fun part for me. Explaining not just how to do this, but why it works.

Sorry I can’t help myself!

COOL SCIENCE INSTANTLY FREEZE WATER : SUPPLIES

Supercooling or superfreezing a liquid means that you chill the liquid below its freezing point without it becoming a solid. We all have access to water, so it’s the perfect liquid to work with!  Once the water is chilled below it’s freezing point, we can trigger it to instantly freeze before our eyes! Okay, let’s go!

Here’s what we need:

• Water bottles
• Thermometer
• Watch/timer

COOL SCIENCE TRICK INSTANTLY FREEZE WATER : INSTRUCTIONS

Here are the steps to instantly freeze water:

• Fill your bowl with ice and put it on the table or counter. Somewhere that you don’t need to move it around once you start.
• If you’re impatient (like me!) add some water, to get the ice melting. You should have two to three times as much ice as water. For the large bowl in the picture, I used about eight cups of ice and two of water.
• Add about a cup of salt. I used Kosher salt because it’s more coarse, but table salt works.
• Put your thermometer into the ice bath. Let it cool down for about twenty minutes. (Cool down, you ask? But it’s ice! I’ll explain in just a sec…)
• When the temperature in the icy bath reaches 25 degrees F, add the water bottles.
• Let the water bottles cool down for about 20 minutes, undisturbed.
• When the temperature reaches 16 degrees F, you are ready to roll.
• CAREFULLY take your water bottle out. Twist open the top. Slam it on the table.
• Instant ice!

STEM SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS AT HOME : THE WHY BEHIND THE COOL SCIENCE

We learned in school that ice freezes at 32 degrees F. (or 0 degrees Celsius) The more complex concept is that the freezing or melting point of a substance is actually the temperature at which the liquid and solid phases are in equilibrium.

For pure water, this means that ice is melting at exactly the same rate that liquid water is freezing. At 32 degrees F or 0 degrees C.

Chemical equilibrium is an important concept. Nature loves an equilibrium!

What we’ve created with that icy salt bowl is a perfect equilibrium for the bottled water!

For the water to freeze completely to ice, it needs something to freeze on to. These are called ‘nucleation sites.’ 

Any small impurity will work. So do vibrations! That’s why we hit the bottle on the table, to begin the crystallization. Chemistry gets it way, and a new equilibrium is established with the solid ice!

WHAT ABOUT THE SALT?

What about the salt, you ask? Good question!

The salt in the bowl interferes with the chemical bonding needed to form a solid (in this case ice). So the salt is lowering water’s freezing point. Salt is composed of sodium and chlorine. The water molecules tend to stick to the salt ions in solution instead of to each other, and the water doesn’t freeze.

And this is why we sprinkle salt on our sidewalks and driveways in the winter. The salt interferes with the water molecules lining up and ice does not form.

In fact, our salty oceans freeze at around 28.4 degrees F because of the salt! 

But without a nucleation site and if the water stays very still, you can keep cooling the water well below 32 degrees F (0 C) . This condition is known as ‘supercooled.’ Under the right conditions, water can stay liquid until it reaches -40 degrees Celsius.

Give this a try! Please let me know how this cool science trick to instantly freeze water goes for you. Feel free to contact me for troubleshooting!

STEM SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS AT HOME

Here’s another fun STEM science experiment ! And for more science at home for kids, two more here . Take a peek!

Safe chemistry stem science experiments at home such as this one ‘how to superfreeze water’ illustrate how chemical reactions occur. By using household items, science at home will enhance kids’ understanding of the chemistry they encounter every day.

DON’T MISS OUT. PLEASE SUBSCRIBE! Louie and I will send you an email when we have more cool science to share. This happens ~twice a month.

This experiments makes me wish I was still teaching Science to 4th graders. Great podcast!

Thanks, Amy! Science is fun.

Well done. I like it!

Thanks! It was fun to do.

This is such a great idea!! Thank you for sharing x

Thanks for stopping by!

Creating your first podcast can be challenging. Congratulations… you did it! I love the video too. This is such a cool experiment. Thanks for sharing!

It’s fun when the ice forms. Thanks for checking out my post!

This experiment looks so cool and also not too difficult! Thanks for the video. I’m going to try this with my niece.

Let me know how it goes! Thanks!

It was fun to do. give it a try!

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Make Sense of Science is my email newsletter where I share information about future science, new tech developments, as well as tools and resources for STEM at home. It arrives every two weeks and you’ll only hear from me. (And Louie)

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How to Create Critical Thinkers by Freezing Water: A Science Experiment

Creating critical thinkers can be done with little more than water, food coloring, and a below-freezing temperature! Learn how freezing water can become a science experiment in this simple investigation.

The other day, my nine-year-old daughter asked me if the color of water would affect its freezing point. I asked her what she thought the answer was, and she said that because darker colors absorb heat better than lighter ones, she assumed that dark-colored water would freeze at a lower temperature than light-colored water. 

I suggested that she get some food coloring and test her hypothesis! Although I knew that the addition of food coloring wouldn’t change the freezing point of water, I realized that this would be an excellent opportunity for her to design, test, and analyze her very own experiment. Nurturing her confidence in carrying out the scientific method from start to finish was a fundamental part of her education, so we quickly gathered our supplies and she got started!

Experimenting with Freezing Water

From this simple experiment, your learners can (with a bit of guidance depending on ability level):

• Form a hypothesis
• Discuss background information
• Create a materials list
• Write step-by-step instructions to conduct the experiment
• Collect data
• Visualize data with the creation of a graph
• Analyze the data
• Form a conclusion based on the data collected

Learning how to properly design, conduct, and analyze an experiment takes time. We did this activity in two days. The first was spent on designing and conducting the experiment, the second was devoted to graphing the data, analyzing the results, and drawing conclusions. Depending on the ability level of your learners, and the time you have to devote to this lesson, it is perfectly appropriate to spread the learning out over a week.

To give you an example to work from, here is what my daughter chose to do:

Asking a Question and Forming a Hypothesis

The question my daughter asked was, “Does the color of water affect its freezing point?”.

Using her background knowledge of heat absorption and colors, she determined that a plausible answer to the question would be yes because darker colors absorb more heat than lighter colors. This is also known as her hypothesis, as it is an educated guess as to the outcome of the experiment.

Your learners may choose a different question, such as “Does the container the water is held in effect its freezing point?” or “Does the volume of water affect its freezing point?” – any question that has one variable will work well for this experiment! 

Discussing Background Information

Being familiar with the freezing point of water is a key element in this experiment. Discuss with your learner that water freezes at 0℃ or 32℉. Temperatures above freezing point will cause a phase change from solid to liquid water, and temperatures below freezing point will do the reverse.

We happen to live in a seasonal climate where winters dip below freezing on a regular basis, which is why we chose to conduct this experiment outside. However, this experiment could easily be done in a freezer, so long as the temperature is adjusted to be a few degrees below the freezing point of water, to allow for a more gradual phase change from liquid to solid.

Creating a Materials List for the Experiment

Now it’s time for your learner to get to work. Have them collect the materials that they will need and place them in the designated workspace, then write a list of the necessary items in their science journal. Here is what my daughter chose to use for her freezing water experiment:

• Red, yellow, and blue food coloring
• 4 plastic cups*
• Thermometer
• Measuring cup

*my daughter originally wrote that she would use 4 jars until we discussed that thin glass jars could potentially crack when water was frozen in them, so she switched to using clear, plastic drinking cups.

Designing the Instructions for the Freezing Water Experiment

Writing instructions challenges even the brightest of students, because writing clear, concise directions is a skill that requires a lot of practice. If possible, allow students to verbalize their instructions to you or to a partner to help them clarify their meaning and add in any missing steps. Students may find they need to revisit and edit their materials list once they’ve created their instructions, as additional items may be needed to experiment!

Here is the final list of instructions my daughter created to conduct her freezing water experiment:

• Get your materials.
• Put 100 mL of water into four cups.
• Put two drops of food coloring into each cup of water; leave one cup clear.
• Stir each cup to spread out the food coloring drops.
• Take the starting temperature of each cup and record.
• Place the four cups outside.
• Set a timer for 10 minutes.
• Every 10 minutes, check until they are frozen.

Designing instructions is a great time to have a conversation about controls and variables. In my daughter’s experiment, she chose to have one cup without food coloring, which served as her control. The only variable, or the factor that changed, was the food dye color difference added to the three remaining cups.

Collecting Scientific Data

Before my daughter began to collect data for her freezing water experiment, she created a simple table to record her information. We have a thermometer that measures temperature in Celcius, so that is the measurement she recorded every 10 minutes. She planned to collect data until each cup reached 0℃. 

That being said, temperature collection is not necessary to complete this experiment. I wanted my daughter to collect data to practice her graphing skills. For younger learners, this could be used instead as a qualitative observational experiment, where learners watch to see when the cups begin to form ice inside.

Here is an example of the data collection table we used:

During the data collection phase of this experiment, my daughter quickly realized that measuring the temperature of each cup every ten minutes was quite a chore! I told her to make a note of that in her science journal, as a reminder for the next time she designed an experiment that had time as a factor.

Visualizing Scientific Data with a Graph

Temperature was the measurement we recorded to determine if the color of water affected its freezing point. Since the temperature was collected at even time intervals, a line graph is an appropriate way to visualize the information. Remember to point out the following things when helping your learner create their graph:

• The x-axis is at the bottom of the graph and will display time, or the independent variable.
• The y-axis is on the left vertical side of the graph and will display temperature, or the dependent variable.
• Label each axis in even increments and include the unit of measurement in the axis title.
• Draw a clear dot to represent each data point
• Connect the data points for each colored cup like you would connect dots on a picture.
• Include a key to help explain the data.
• Create a title for the graph that highlights what the graph is visualizing.

Again, depending on the age and ability level of your learner, you may choose to only demonstrate how to graph the data, or set up the graph and allow the student to plot their information. Or skip this step altogether and verbally discuss the results of the freezing water experiment!

Drawing Conclusions from the Freezing Water Experiment

This is one of the best parts of any science experiment – discovering if your prediction was accurate! Make sure to stress to your learners that making a correct prediction is not the goal of the experiment; learning from the experiment is!

For my daughter’s experiment, she concluded that adding food coloring to water didn’t affect the freezing point. She then went on to talk about other things she could try to change the freezing point of water, like adding salt to the water. I think she may have remembered a lesson I taught with Medinah of Science Teacher Mom that looked at why we add salt to roads in the winter ! 

You may notice that once your student understands the process of designing and conducting an experiment, they’ll want to experiment over and over again. I’d count that as a win! 

Making Science Easily Accessible

Conducting simple scientific experiments like this one allows students to see that science is everywhere and doesn’t require fancy equipment to conduct investigations. Additionally, their confidence in making predictions and interpreting information will grow, strengthening their critical thinking skills.

If you try this freezing water experiment, please let me know by tagging me @thoughtfullysustainable on Instagram or Facebook , or by leaving a comment below! If you have any questions, feel free to email me ! 

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From Liquid to Solid: How Long Does It Take Water to Freeze?

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You may have seen videos of what looks like an ordinary bottle of cold water hanging out and minding its own watery business until bam! Someone taps it against the table and the whole bottle turns instantly to ice . What is this dark wizardry?

It isn't magic but instead science that causes the bottled water to completely freeze — and some pretty simple science at that. So, how long does it take water to freeze ? Let's find out.

The Mystery of Nucleation

Freezing point fun facts, quick freezing faqs and myth busting.

When any substance changes state — like liquid water changing to solid ice — the process involves nucleation . It’s the anchor that creates the first ice crystal and then promotes the rapid formation of more.

Heterogeneous Nucleation

This happens when there are impurities, like dust, present in the water, providing the necessary nucleus for ice formation in water exposed to freezing temperatures. Ice crystals then form throughout the liquid, turning our water into solid ice over time.

Homogeneous Nucleation

Pure water has no impurities, so without a nucleus to kickstart the freezing process, the water becomes supercooled. This allows the water to freeze faster when exposed to an external nucleus, making the magic of "instant" ice possible.

Water famously becomes completely frozen at 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius). But when water is devoid of impurities, like in purified bottled water, the freezing process requires even colder temperatures.

So, if you place bottles of purified water in the cold air of a freezer and leave them a couple of hours, they'll still be liquid because pure water with no nuclei in it freezes at minus 43.6 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 42 degrees Celsius). It's now a supercooled liquid, which does indeed sound super cool.

Let's Make Some Instant Ice!

Ready to freeze water? Grab some water bottles and place them in your freezer. Make sure it's undisturbed for a few hours, getting it to that supercooled state. The exact freezing time? Typically, it takes about two-and-a-half to three hours .

Once the wait is over, remove the bottles with care. Then shake one or whack it on the table.

Anything can act as a nucleus at this point — air bubbles, a slight dent in the bottle. Any little change will be enough to cause homogenous nucleation. Once that disturbance is present, the uniform water molecules will freeze completely and so quickly that it looks instant.

An alternative to the whacking or shaking method is to pour the supercooled water over an ice cube. The cube will serve as the nucleus, and you'll be able to create a little tower of ice as you pour.

Which Freezes Faster, Hot or Cold Water?

An interesting phenomenon known as the Mpemba effect suggests that under certain conditions, hot water freezes faster than cold water. Crazy, right?

Do Different Ice Trays Affect the Freezing Process?

Absolutely! A metal ice cube tray, for instance, might speed up the process of freezing water for solid ice cubes compared to a plastic ice tray, because metal ice cube trays conduct heat (and the lack of it). Oversized ice cube trays, on the other hand, might take longer simply due to the larger volume.

What's the Ideal Water for Instant Ice?

Bottled or purified water is typically best for this icy experiment, but tap water, depending on how treated it is, can sometimes work too.

This article was updated in conjunction with AI technology, then fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor.

Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks.com article:

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How to Freeze Water Fast

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You won’t believe your eyes when you watch a glass of water instantly freeze when an ice cube is placed in the water! Let’s get started with this super cool science experiment and learn How to Freeze Water Fast.

Get more fun and educational Weather Experiments for Kids here!

This is such a fun and fascinating experiment and a great way to teach kids about the freezing point of water!

Table of Contents

This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Supplies Needed:

• 2 or 3 Sealed Water Bottles
• Thermometer
• Clear Glass Cup

How to Freeze Water Without a Freezer

• Fill a large bowl with ice, 2 or 3 sealed water bottles, and some rock salt.
• Stick a thermometer into the bowl of ice and wait for the temperature of the ice water in the bowl to drop to 17º-20º F.
• Gently pull one of the bottles out of the bowl and pour it into a clear glass cup or jar.
• Grab an ice cube and place it in the glass of very cold water to watch the water instantly freeze into ice!
• Repeat steps 3-4 with your remaining supercooled water bottles to watch the ice form before your eyes again and again!

Step 1: Add Ice, Rock Salt, and Water Bottles Into a Large Bowl

Although this super cool experiment does freeze water in an instant, there is a little bit of prep time that we need to do first to get the temperature of the water bottles to just the right point where they will freeze!

So go ahead and fill a very large bowl with lots and lots of ice cubes! Then stick 2 or 3 sealed water bottles into the icy bowl.

Now scatter some rock salt on top of the ice in the bowl. Be very generous with the rock salt. The properties of salt actually allows ice to melt at a temperature below the freezing mark (32°F or 0°C).

As the ice melts into an icy-watery mixture in the bowl, it will remain below freezing thanks to the salt. This will cause the water inside the water bottles to drop below freezing without turning to ice!

Step 2: Use a Thermometer to Monitor the Temperature of the Ice

Grab a cooking, or meat thermometer and place it in the ice near the bottles. It should take at least 30 minutes for the temperature to get where it needs to be, but could take up to 90 minutes.

This step is probably the hardest part if you lack patience like I do…but it’s crucial in order to get the water in the bottles to be supercooled to the right temperature.

Supercooling the water is the scientific term for when a temperature of a liquid drops below it’s freezing point and remains a liquid (water) without turning to a solid (ice).

We need the temperature of the ice water in the bowl to be between 17°-20°F for the water inside the bottles to get supercooled.

If you don’t have a thermometer on hand, another great sign that your water bottles are cold enough to make liquid ice is to check the outside of the bottle for frozen condensation droplets.

If the condensation on the outside of your bottles have become frosty or frozen, the liquid inside the bottle is likely cold enough to move on to the next step to make water freeze fast!

Step 3: Pull a Bottle Out and Pour it Into a Clear Glass

Once you determine that your water bottles have cooled to that magical 17°-20°F temperature range, gently pull one of them out of the bowl.

Just a slight shake of the bottle could be enough to prematurely kickstart the freezing process and you will end up with a frozen bottle of water (which is still fascinating, but not the end result we want this time).

While being careful not to disturb the water more than you have to, pour one bottle of water into a clear glass cup or jar.

It’s best to fill the glass very close to the top with the supercooled water out of the bottle.

Depending on the size of your glass you may need to use 2 bottles, but I prefer to save the 2nd and 3rd bottles to repeat the process you are about to witness!

Step 4: Touch an Ice Cube to the Water in the Cup

With your glass nearly filled to the brim with liquid water that is below the freezing point, grab an ice cube and place it in the top of the water.

Depending on the temperature of your water, it might take a few seconds for the reaction between the ice cube and the supercooled water to be seen.

After a few seconds the water in the jar will begin to crystalize and solidify into a slushy, icy drink! It is mesmerizing to watch this ice making process unfold right before your eyes!

Step 5: Repeat the Process With Multiple Bottles to See the Ice Form Again

Now that you have learned how to freeze water fast why not have some fun making more ice with your other bottles that are supercooled!?

You can repeat this same super cool experiment again by repeating steps 3-4, or you could try some other cool things with your supercooled water like making ice pillars in this How to Turn Water Into Ice Instantly experiment!

Can Ice Cubes Freeze Water?

It is more typical that ice cubes melt into a glass of cold water than it is for ice cubes to freeze a glass of water. This is because water needs to lose a lot of heat energy to drop below freezing.

Most household ice is at a temperature of about 23°F, so it doesn’t take much heat energy from water to melt the ice cubes, however there are a few cases in which ice cubes can freeze water!

In our experiment how to make water freeze fast, the water bottles were already supercooled and remained as a liquid below freezing.

The below freezing water just needed an ice cube or particle to crystalize onto to start the ice forming process.

Adding the ice cube to the supercooled water did turn the water into ice because the water was already below freezing.

Another way to turn water into ice with an ice cube would be to use ice cubes that are very cold to allow them to absorb enough heat energy from the water without the ice cubes melting.

This typically doesn’t happen unless the environment (outside, freezer, etc.) is below freezing and freezes the water and keeps the ice frozen too!

How Does Water Freeze Into Ice?

Liquid water typically freezes into a solid form of ice when the temperature of the water drops at or below 32°F. This is the temperature that water molecules slow down enough to stick to each other and form a solid crystal.

From this experiment, we learned that water does not always follow the rule of freezing at 32°F though. Under the right conditions, purified water that does not have impurities and minerals can drop below the freezing point and remain a liquid and is referred to as supercooled water.

What causes freezing rain?

Freezing rain is a great example of supercooled water in the atmosphere. This fascinating weather phenomenon occurs when warm air (above freezing) rises up and over cold, (below freezing) air at the surface.

As the precipitation falls out of the clouds into the warmer air, it melts and becomes all rain until it reaches the thin layer of cold air near the ground. This cold layer of below freezing air near the ground supercools the rain drops.

Even though the raindrops have been supercooled to a temperature below freezing, they do not have time to freeze during their short trip through the shallow layer of cold air.

These below freezing supercooled raindrops then freeze immediately on contact with anything they contact at the surface including cars, roads, trees, sidewalks, etc. Freezing rain storms are often called ice storms and can make very dangerous winter conditions.

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More Fun and Educational Experiments for Kids:

• How to Make Instant Snow at Home
• Flexible Eggshell Experiment
• Baking Soda and Vinegar Balloon Experiment

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Unveiling the Magic of Supercooling: How to Instantly Freeze Water

Table of contents.

Have you ever marveled at a magic trick where water turns into ice instantly? What if I told you it’s not magic but science at its best, and you can recreate this phenomenon at home? Welcome to the fascinating world of supercooling, a process that defies our everyday experience with freezing and offers a peek into the intriguing behaviors of liquids under extreme conditions.

What is Supercooling?

Supercooling is an extraordinary state where a liquid or gas is cooled below its usual freezing point without it transitioning into a solid form. For water, this means having liquid water exist below 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit) without it turning into ice. This phenomenon challenges our conventional understanding of freezing and provides an exceptional opportunity to explore the delicate balance between temperature and state of matter.

The Science Behind Supercooling

At its core, supercooling is all about achieving a state of delicate equilibrium. Under normal circumstances, when water reaches its freezing point, it begins to form ice as the molecules slow down and arrange themselves in a crystalline structure, releasing energy in the process. However, if the cooling process is smooth enough to avoid disturbing this delicate balance, water can be cooled below its freezing point without the formation of ice crystals. This state is unstable, though; even a minor disturbance can trigger rapid freezing.

The Instant Ice Phenomenon

The most mesmerizing aspect of supercooling is what happens when this unstable state is disturbed. Imagine a bottle of supercooled water, liquid and clear, sitting well below freezing temperature. The moment you pour it out or introduce an impurity, ice forms instantly right before your eyes, as if by magic. The transition from liquid to solid happens so quickly because the supercooled water was just waiting for an excuse to freeze. During this instant freezing process, the water actually warms up to 0 degrees Celsius as it releases latent heat.

Experimenting with Supercooling at Home

Curious to try this at home? With patience and careful preparation, you can witness the magic of supercooling in your own kitchen. Here’s how:

Materials You’ll Need:

• Purified or distilled water (Impurities in regular tap water can initiate freezing)
• A clean and smooth plastic bottle (Avoid scratches that can act as nucleation sites for ice formation)

Step-by-Step Guide:

• Prepare Your Water: Fill the plastic bottle with purified or distilled water. Make sure the bottle is smooth and free of any labels or residues.
• Chill: Place the bottle in your freezer. The key here is to find the sweet spot where the water is supercooled but not frozen. This usually takes between 2 to 3 hours, but it can vary depending on your freezer’s temperature settings.
• Check Carefully: After a couple of hours, gently check the bottle every 15-20 minutes. You’re looking for water that’s still liquid but is very cold.
• Initiate Freezing: Once you have your supercooled water, remove it from the freezer carefully to avoid disturbing it too much. For the grand reveal, either pour the water onto a piece of ice or tap the bottle gently. You’ll witness the instant transformation from liquid to ice.

Safety Tips:

While experimenting with supercooling is generally safe, always handle bottles with care as they can crack under extreme temperatures.

Understanding Supercooling’s Implications

Beyond being a captivating demonstration, supercooling has profound implications in various scientific and practical fields. In meteorology, understanding supercooled water droplets helps in predicting weather patterns and phenomena like freezing rain. In technology, researchers are exploring ways to use supercooling in preserving organs for transplants more efficiently than current methods allow.

The Wonders of Water

Water continues to surprise and intrigue scientists with its unique properties and behaviors like supercooling. It’s a reminder of how even the most common substance on our planet has secrets waiting to be unlocked. Supercooling exemplifies how science can turn everyday materials into objects of wonder and exploration, bridging the gap between the laboratory and your kitchen.

So next time you see a magic trick where liquid instantly turns to ice, remember: it’s not just an illusion but a delightful demonstration of physics at play. And with a bit of patience and precision, it’s something you can experience firsthand from the comfort of your home.

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Water expands when it freezes

In association with Nuffield Foundation

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Demonstrate that water expands when it freezes by showing how it can break a bottle

In this practical, students observe what happens when a bottle is filled with water and allowed to freeze. The water expands as it freezes, which breaks the bottle. This is useful when teaching about the weathering of rocks and freeze-thaw.

This demonstration can be set up in one lesson and left in the freezer until the next. The demonstration itself takes only a few minutes.

• Glass bottle with a lid (see note 2 below)
• Plastic zip-lock type bag (see note 3 below)

Health, safety and technical notes

• Read our standard health and safety guidance.
• A thin-walled glass bottle with a screw-top lid is ideal.
• A thick plastic bag is best as it will need to contain broken glass. The bag needs to be see-through.
• Fill the bottle as full as you can and attach the lid.
• Dry the outside of the bottle, place into the plastic bag and seal it.
• Put into the freezer at least overnight.

Remove the bag from the freezer and observe the broken bottle.

Teaching notes

This demonstration shows the very unusual property which water has of expanding when it freezes. In the liquid state water molecules can pack more closely together than in the crystal structure of ice. This means the ice is less dense and so takes up more space than the liquid. It might be worth emphasising to the students that this is an unusual property and most substances become more dense as solids.

This property contributes to the physical weathering of rocks. Rocks which absorb water and then freeze can be broken down as the water expands.

The broken bottle can be put back into the freezer and used again later to show to another class.

Additional information

This is a resource from the  Practical Chemistry project , developed by the Nuffield Foundation and the Royal Society of Chemistry. 

Practical Chemistry activities accompany  Practical Physics  and  Practical Biology .

© Nuffield Foundation and the Royal Society of Chemistry

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Specification

• Hydrogen bonding between molecules in ice results in an expanded structure that causes the density of ice to be less than that of water at low temperatures.
• (c) structures of iodine and ice
• Characteristics of covalent substances.
• Distinction between intramolecular bonding and intermolecular forces. Intermolecular forces: van der Waals', dipole-dipole, hydrogen bonding.
• 2. Develop and use models to describe the nature of matter; demonstrate how they provide a simple way to to account for the conservation of mass, changes of state, physical change, chemical change, mixtures, and their separation.

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Freezing Water Experiment

Love simple science experiments? YES!! Well, here’s another one the kids are sure to love! Explore the freezing point of water and discover what happens when you freeze salt water. All you need are some bowls of water and salt. We love easy science experiments for kids !

Easy Science for Kids

This simple freezing water experiment is great for learning about water’s freezing temperature and how it compares to salt water.

Our science experiments have you, the parent or teacher, in mind! Easy to set up and quick to do, most activities will take only 15 to 30 minutes to complete and are fun! Our supplies lists usually contain only free or cheap materials you can source from home.

Check out our favorite chemistry experiments and physics experiments !

Grab some salt and bowls of water (Suggestion – follow up this experiment with our ice melting experiment ) and investigate how salt affects the freezing point of water!

Freezing Point of Water Experiment

Want more experiments with water? Check out 30 fun water experiments !

INSTRUCTIONS:

STEP 1: Label the bowls “Bowl 1” and “Bowl 2”.

STEP 2: Measure out 4 cups of water for each bowl.

STEP 3: Add 2 tablespoons of salt to bowl 2, a little at a time, stirring as you go.

STEP 4: Place both bowls in the freezer, check the bowls after a hour to see how they have changed.

Optional – use a thermometer to measure the water in both bowls.

STEP 5: Recheck them after 24 hours. What do you notice?

What is the Freezing Point of Water?

The freezing point of water is 0° Celsius / 32° Fahrenheit. But what temperature does salt water freeze at? If there is salt in the water, the freezing point is lower. The more salt there is in the water, the lower the freezing point will be and the longer the water will take to freeze.

What happens when water freezes? When fresh water freezes, water molecules of hydrogen and oxygen bind together, forming ice. Salt in the water makes it harder for the molecules to bind with the ice structure; basically, the salt gets in the way of the molecules, blocking them from joining the ice. This is an example of a physical change !

Also check out our states of matter experiments !

That’s why salt water takes longer to freeze. It is also why salt is sometimes used on icy roads to slow down freezing and make them safer to drive on.

Using the Scientific Method

The scientific method is a process or method of research. A problem is identified, information about the problem is gathered, a hypothesis or question is formulated from the information, and the hypothesis is put to test with an experiment to prove or disprove its validity. Sounds heavy…

What in the world does that mean?!? The scientific method should be used as a guide to help lead the process.

You don’t need to try and solve the world’s biggest science questions! The scientific method is all about studying and learning things right around you.

As kids develop practices that involve creating, gathering data evaluating, analyzing, and communicating, they can apply these critical thinking skills to any situation.

To learn more about the scientific method and how to use it, click here.

Even though the scientific method feels like it is just for big kids…

This method can be used with kids of all ages! Have a casual conversation with younger kiddos or do a more formal notebook entry with older kiddos!

Free printable freezing water science project!

More fun experiments to try.

• Make a floating drawing with our  dry erase marker experiment .
• Blow up a balloon with just soda and salt in this soda balloon experiment .
• Make a homemade lava lamp with salt .
• Learn about osmosis when you try this fun potato osmosis experiment with the kids.
• Explore sound and vibrations when you try this fun dancing sprinkles experiment .
• Grab some marbles to use with this easy viscosity experiment .

Helpful Science Resources To Get You Started

Here are a few resources that will help you introduce science more effectively to your kiddos or students and feel confident yourself when presenting materials. You’ll find helpful free printables throughout.

• Best Science Practices (as it relates to the scientific method)
• Science Vocabulary
• 8 Science Books for Kids
• All About Scientists
• Free Science Worksheets
• Science Supplies List
• Science Tools for Kids
• Join us in the Club

Printable Science Projects For Kids

If you’re looking to grab all of our printable science projects in one convenient place plus exclusive worksheets and bonuses like a STEAM Project pack, our Science Project Pack is what you need! Over 300+ Pages!

• 90+ classic science activities  with journal pages, supply lists, set up and process, and science information.  NEW! Activity-specific observation pages!
• Best science practices posters  and our original science method process folders for extra alternatives!
• Be a Collector activities pack  introduces kids to the world of making collections through the eyes of a scientist. What will they collect first?
• Know the Words Science vocabulary pack  includes flashcards, crosswords, and word searches that illuminate keywords in the experiments!
• My science journal writing prompts  explore what it means to be a scientist!!
• Bonus STEAM Project Pack:  Art meets science with doable projects!
• Bonus Quick Grab Packs for Biology, Earth Science, Chemistry, and Physics

Subscribe to receive a free 5-Day STEM Challenge Guide

~ projects to try now ~.

How to flash freeze water in a bottle

Science in sweatpants: supercool flash freeze.

Today’s experiment may be something you’ve seen on social media, we’ll be instantly freezing a bottle of water and growing ice crystals.

AUSTIN, Texas - Today’s experiment may be something you’ve seen on social media, we’ll be freezing a bottle of water and growing ice crystals instantly.

We’ll be working with supercooled water, which is water that’s cooled below the freezing point but remains in liquid form. The process we’re demonstrating today is known as nucleation. Nucleation describes the process where ice crystals begin to form around a point known as a nucleus. Once the ice crystals form around the nucleus, they’ll continue to grow throughout the liquid.

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Here’s what you’ll need:

• Room temperature, purified water (I’m using Fiji 500 mL bottled water)
• Ice cubes for the second demonstration

We’ll need purified water because it’s free from sediments and impurities. If we were using tap water or mineral water, the minerals/sediments in the water would act as nuclei and freezing would begin too soon.

To get started, place two bottles of water in the freezer and set a timer for 2 hours and 15 minutes. It’s important that these bottles are undisturbed throughout the entire 2 hours and 15 minutes. If the bottles are jostled or the freezer temperature changes too rapidly, the nucleation process could begin before we want it to.

After the timer goes off…gently remove one of the bottles from the freezer. If everything has gone according to plan, the water should still be in its liquid form.

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Experiment 1:

Now slam the bottle on the counter. The entire bottle of supercooled water should freeze within seconds. This happens because the jarring motion forces a few of the water molecules to line up into a crystal lattice structure that acts as a nucleus for the rest of the crystals to grow off of. Super cool!

Experiment 2:

Now what happens when we provide a nucleus for the ice crystals to grow on?

Take your second bottle of supercooled water out of the freezer. Pour the water over your ice cubes and watch as the water instantly freezes and creates an icy stalagmite.

That’s because the ice cubes are made up of ice crystals so when the supercooled water touches them, it instantly freezes.

MORE SCIENCE IN SWEATPANTS

Case Studies of Students Doing Science

The Dynamics of Learners’ Engagement and Persistence in Science

Freezing Water Bottle

5 th  grade students had been discussing how water evaporates using a model that predicts increasing volume with increasing temperature. But they realize there’s a problem: Water expands when it freezes. The first clip begins with Jack A. describing the discrepancy.

Jack A. recalls how when you put a water bottle in the freezer, you have to leave room for the water to expand so the bottle won’t get damaged. He contrasts this experience with a student’s idea that water molecules pack together when freezing: “Wouldn’t packed together mean smaller?”

Not all students agree there is an inconsistency. DC argues that connecting lots of molecules would make one giant molecule—it would be bigger . Jack A. and Ben argue back, using kids in the classroom as an analogy: If all the kids clumped together on the little carpet, “we would be big, but we wouldn’t have to make the classroom expand.”

After Jonathan says he isn’t following, Jack A. reiterates the problem, using the same analogy: If everyone is spread out around the classroom, like molecules in water, and then pack together, like molecules in ice, the ice formation should be more compact than the water formation. Jack B. pushes for a mechanism, asking, “then how does it expand…?” which Jack A. agrees is the question.

Ben has an idea. He grabs two notebooks and smacks them together to represent the two water molecules merging, asking the class to “pretend there’s metaphorical water bottle around” them. He then pops the center of the notebooks away from each other, creating a hollow space in the middle.

Ms. Filner says Ben’s idea helps her think about the phenomenon, that there might be empty spaces between the molecules. DC cites evidence of having seen little pockets of air in ice. Ella proposes an experiment to test that idea: Fill a bottle to the very top so there is no air. If the air is responsible for expansion, and all of the air is removed from the closed system of the water bottle, the water may not expand when frozen.

Jack B. continues to push for a mechanism to explain the expansion. Ben repeats his idea that the molecules come together and then spread apart to become bigger, which explains the pockets of air in ice cubes. DC provides more evidence: When you put ice cubes in water, they crack, which he says is their releasing the trapped pockets of air.

Jack A. proposes an alternative theory. Instead of the molecules merging together and then pushing apart, he suggests the air gets trapped between the water molecules as they are merging together. He takes a flat sheet of paper and crumples it up, representing a puddle of water turning into an ice cube. He points out that there is air trapped between the folds of the crumpled paper, similar to what might happen as liquid water turns to ice.

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The Enduring Mystery of How Water Freezes

June 17, 2024

New simulations indicate that ice crystallization happens fastest — this slow-motion movie covers mere nanoseconds — when water is tuned to a critical point called the liquid-liquid transition.

https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2322853121

Introduction

We learn in grade school that water freezes at zero degrees Celsius, but that’s seldom true. In clouds, scientists have found supercooled water droplets as chilly as minus 40 C, and in a lab in 2014, they cooled water to a staggering minus 46 C before it froze. You can supercool water at home: Throw a bottle of distilled water in your freezer, and it’s unlikely to crystallize until you shake it.

Freezing usually doesn’t happen right at zero degrees for much the same reason that backyard wood piles don’t spontaneously combust. To get started, fire needs a spark. And ice needs a nucleus — a seed of ice around which more and more water molecules arrange themselves into a crystal structure.

The formation of these seeds is called ice nucleation. Nucleation is so slow for pure water at zero degrees that it might as well not happen at all. But in nature, impurities provide surfaces for nucleation, and these impurities can drastically change how quickly and at what temperature ice forms.

For a process that’s anything but exotic, ice nucleation remains surprisingly mysterious. Chemists can’t reliably predict the effect of a given impurity or surface, let alone design one to hinder or promote ice formation. But they’re chipping away at the problem. They’re building computer models that can accurately simulate water’s behavior, and they’re looking to nature for clues — proteins made by bacteria and fungi are the best ice makers scientists know of.

Understanding how ice forms is more than an academic exercise. Motes of material create ice seeds in clouds, which lead to most of the precipitation that falls to Earth as snow and rain. Several dry Western states use ice-nucleating materials to promote precipitation, and U.S. government agencies including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Air Force have experimented with ice nucleation for drought relief or as a war tactic. (Perhaps snowstorms could waylay the enemy.) And in some countries, hail-fighting planes dust clouds with silver iodide, a substance that helps small droplets to freeze, hindering the growth of large hailstones.

Konrad Meister, a biophysical chemist at Boise State University in Idaho, uses a video wall to explore the structure of ice-nucleating proteins.

Courtesy of Konrad Meister

But there’s still much to learn. “Everyone agrees that ice forms,” said Valeria Molinero , a physical chemist at the University of Utah who builds computer simulations of water. “After that, there are questions.”

Freezing Water

What’s special about zero degrees is that, at or below this temperature, it makes energetic sense for water to turn from liquid into ice. Below that threshold, ice’s crystal structure has a lower energy than sloshing water molecules. The process of freezing water actually releases heat, which is why you can use an infrared camera to see ice heat up as it solidifies.

Ice nucleation begins when, by chance, random jiggling arranges a small patch of triangular H 2 O molecules into a hexagonal ice structure. This ice embryo might grow into a nucleus and kick off freezing. Or it might just dissolve away. That’s because there’s an energy barrier that keeps embryos from growing. It’s energetically costly to form an interface between ice and water; molecules arranged in an ice structure butt up against molecules of the surrounding liquid, and the resulting imbalanced forces make the interface unstable. Until a speck of frost reaches a certain size, the cost of its interface overwhelms the payoff of energy released by the ice formed inside.

This barrier to nucleation is like being at the top of a sea cliff on a hot day, said Konrad Meister , a biophysical chemist at Boise State University who studies biological antifreezes and ice-nucleating substances. You’re hot; you’d rather be in the water. But without a gust of wind to push you off or a friend to encourage you to jump, your fear keeps you paralyzed, trapped in the less-ideal state at the top of the cliff.

Snow guns used at ski resorts spray water into the air mixed with an ice-nucleating agent, often proteins from the bacterium Pseudomonas syringae .

zedspider/Shutterstock

The colder that water gets, the smaller this energy barrier gets. This makes it easier for random molecular motions to push a tiny embryonic ice structure over the critical size threshold. Ice forms and grows, and the lower-energy crystal structure stays stable.

Boosting Nucleation

Surfaces and impurities can dramatically lower the energy barrier for nucleation — and therefore raise the temperature at which ice forms. “Since the late 1970s, we’ve known that there are lots of aspects of a surface that are important,” said Miriam Freedman , an atmospheric chemist at Pennsylvania State University.

Like a microscopic construction scaffold, surfaces with the right structure make it easier for water molecules to arrange themselves into a crystal. Researchers have identified a few things that can make a surface better or worse at nucleating ice. A surface’s crystallinity, or structural orderliness, matters. And substances with chemical structures that mimic ice tend to be good at ice nucleation. Pores of a certain size confine water molecules in a way that helps ice form, too.

Meister and Molinero have been working together to unravel the secrets of nature’s best snow makers — bacteria and fungi whose proteins interact with water in ways that promote ice nucleation. Many of these organisms are plant pathogens, and it’s possible that their ice-nucleating proteins evolved to cause frost damage.

The best known ice nucleator is a bacterium called Pseudomonas syringae , which has a protein that can force water to freeze at around minus 2 degrees Celsius. “It’s so good that all the artificial snowmaking, at least in Utah, and some [other] places in the U.S., uses this bacteria to make snow,” Meister said.

Bigger proteins tend to be better for making ice, possibly because they act as a more effective template: Imagine trying to build a skyscraper with a scaffold just a few stories tall.

But with all they know, scientists still encounter surprises. Meister, Molinero and their co-authors recently discovered an exception to the bigger-is-better rule: fungal proteins that are great at ice nucleation despite being tiny. They get around the problem by clumping together into large, ice-nucleating aggregates.

Predicting Ice

Molinero develops theories and computational models that capture how ice nucleates, including its interaction with surfaces.  In 2009, she and her colleague Emily Moore published a simplified model of water that treats each H 2 O molecule as a single, tetrahedron-shaped atom; surprisingly, computer simulations of this monatomic-water model accurately reproduce water’s large-scale properties, like its density. Then, in 2011, Molinero and Moore used the monatomic-water model to pinpoint a specific structural change in supercooled water that sets the lower limit of water’s freezing point. The model predicts that water must freeze at minus 48.15 C.

More recently, in computer simulations published in May in the  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , Molinero and her colleagues showed that  ice crystallization happens fastest  when water’s temperature and pressure are tuned to a point of transition between denser and less dense liquid phases. And in March, they  presented a new model  at the American Chemical Society conference that can predict the temperature at which ice will nucleate on a given surface. The model is informed by experimental data and considers a battery of factors, from the surface’s chemistry to the shapes of its defects.

Depending on their size and geometry, bumps and divots on a surface can squeeze water molecules into configurations that make it easier or harder for ice to form. As part of their model, Molinero’s team developed and tested a new formula for how the bump or divot’s angle affects ice nucleation. Using the formula, Molinero thinks it should be possible to design better ice-nucleating materials just by introducing defects of the right size and shape. “You can take a surface that is not so good and make it quite outstanding,” she said.

According to Molinero, the models atmospheric scientists use to predict cloud behavior don’t yet account for the nuances of ice nucleation. And it’s still unclear which particles are actually the most important for seeding clouds in nature. Mineral particles like Saharan dust are abundant in the atmosphere and can nucleate ice. But they’re not alone up there.

“Up in the clouds, you find some of these bacteria, some of these fungi, that are very good at ice making,” Meister said. “That completely raises the question: What makes it rain?”

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