Dry water
Encyclopedia
Dry water, also known as "powdered water", is a solidified form of water, where water droplets are surrounded by a sandy silica coating. Dry water actually consists of 95 percent liquid water, but the silica coating prevents the water droplets from combining and turning back into a liquid. The result is a white powder that looks very similar to powdered sugar.
, UK
, and has since been evaluated and studied for its potential use in other fields. The dry water itself is easy enough to manufacture. The hydrophobic silica and water
are blended together using a motor with a stirring rod and propeller that spins at 19,000 rpm for 90 seconds, which coats the water droplets completely.
. Scientists consider that dry water will prove useful in the future to help fight global warming
as it was found that it could store as much as three times more carbon dioxide
than ordinary water. Dry water also has application for the transportation and storage of dangerous materials. It can be used as a medium for volatile
compounds, as materials stored within the dry water can be reduced to powder and stabilized – reducing not only the volatility of the substance, but also its weight for transport. It has also been theorized that dry water could have potential uses in the construction of fuel cells for automobiles due to its ability to store and stabilize very large amounts of volatile gases and materials without permanently binding them. Due to its nature, dry water is classified as an adsorbent material. It has many potential uses in fields where emulsions are required or used. Recent studies have also found dry water to help jumpstart reactions or to work as a catalyst.
Discovery
Dry water was first created in 1968 and was immediately snatched up by cosmetic companies as it appeared to have potential applications in the cosmetics field. It was "rediscovered" in 2006 by the University of HullUniversity of Hull
The University of Hull, known informally as Hull University, is an English university, founded in 1927, located in Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire...
, UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and has since been evaluated and studied for its potential use in other fields. The dry water itself is easy enough to manufacture. The hydrophobic silica and water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
are blended together using a motor with a stirring rod and propeller that spins at 19,000 rpm for 90 seconds, which coats the water droplets completely.
Applications
Certain liquids or gases, when mixed with dry water, combine with the water—which then traps them in a silica cage. Hence, they become non-reactive, and are easily transported without worrying about accidental detonation. Dry water is currently being considered for use as a carbon sequestration agent to capture and seal away greenhouse gasses in the atmosphereAtmosphere
An atmosphere is a layer of gases that may surround a material body of sufficient mass, and that is held in place by the gravity of the body. An atmosphere may be retained for a longer duration, if the gravity is high and the atmosphere's temperature is low...
. Scientists consider that dry water will prove useful in the future to help fight global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
as it was found that it could store as much as three times more carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
than ordinary water. Dry water also has application for the transportation and storage of dangerous materials. It can be used as a medium for volatile
Volatility (chemistry)
In chemistry and physics, volatility is the tendency of a substance to vaporize. Volatility is directly related to a substance's vapor pressure. At a given temperature, a substance with higher vapor pressure vaporizes more readily than a substance with a lower vapor pressure.The term is primarily...
compounds, as materials stored within the dry water can be reduced to powder and stabilized – reducing not only the volatility of the substance, but also its weight for transport. It has also been theorized that dry water could have potential uses in the construction of fuel cells for automobiles due to its ability to store and stabilize very large amounts of volatile gases and materials without permanently binding them. Due to its nature, dry water is classified as an adsorbent material. It has many potential uses in fields where emulsions are required or used. Recent studies have also found dry water to help jumpstart reactions or to work as a catalyst.
See also
- Carbon sequestration
- Fuel cellFuel cellA fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Hydrogen is the most common fuel, but hydrocarbons such as natural gas and alcohols like methanol are sometimes used...
- Adsorbent
- EmulsionEmulsionAn emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are normally immiscible . Emulsions are part of a more general class of two-phase systems of matter called colloids. Although the terms colloid and emulsion are sometimes used interchangeably, emulsion is used when both the dispersed and the...
- Volatile organic compoundVolatile organic compoundVolatile organic compounds are organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure at ordinary, room-temperature conditions. Their high vapor pressure results from a low boiling point, which causes large numbers of molecules to evaporate or sublimate from the liquid or solid form of the compound and...
- Ice NineIce NineIce-nine is a fictional solid polymorph of water from Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle.Ice-nine may also refer to:*Ice-Nine, a Grammy-nominated musical composition by Steve Wiest, recorded by the One O'Clock Lab Band on Lab 2009...