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Skajagger-247
New Contributor

Weird thing I noticed about freezing salt water

Just because I was interested in what would happen, I mixed a 50/50 solution of salt and water and put it in the freezer until it froze solid, I checked on it about three days later. I then added tap water on top of it and put it back in the freezer. Checking back on it, about two weeks later, there is the frozen salt solution at the bottom, and solid ice at the top, but in between the layers is a layer of completely clear, liquid water. I’m just looking for an explanation as to why.

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scooke
Contributor III

Re: Weird thing I noticed about freezing salt water

Freezing a solution isn't always as uniform as you might think.  Localized concentrations of the solute may vary.  It is possible that a pocket of solution with sufficient freezing point depression to keep it liquid exists between the frozen saltwater and freshwater layers.

Best regards,

Steven

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