running water how does it freeze?

Question

in the winter were it is cold the ,in tje mountains you have running water fr om the mountain running down of the rocks of the mountains how does in freeze and make ice icalls

Answer 1

Flowing fluids have whats called a velocity gradient, which means that the velocity at the center of the flow is faster than that at the edges. Moreover, their is a thermodynamic phenomenon which involves the pressure of the water making the water at the bottom of the river/lake warmer than the water at the top!

With these two properties, one can see that the water at the surface is traveling the fastest, and is the coldest. Therefore, as the temperature drops, the water freezes from the top first, and moves deeper and deeper as the ambient air temperature starts to overpower the internal energy of the flowing water beneath the ice, until it eventually can overtake the internal energy and freeze the river solid.

Answer 2

I've been wondering the same thing. What you describe is a very complex problem. Running water will freeze
provided that the rate at which heat is removed from the cold surface
exceeds the heat required to transform water at 0 C. to ice at 0 C.
However, the dynamics of this process will be very complicated depending
upon the temperature of the cold surface and the hydrodynamics of the water
flow across that surface (which could be air). Every sleet or hail storm
involves the freezing of liquid water to ice under very turbulent
conditions, for example. I do not think you will find any "simple" equation
to describe such processes.

Answer 3

If you look at a river in the process of freezing in autumn in a really cold place like Canada, where they freeze completely over in winter, the surface gradually gets covered in slush, then chunks of ice and finally the surface freezes solid. But even then, liquid water is flowing underneath the ice. If it stayed cold enough long enough, the river would freeze from the surface downwards until it froze solid all the way down. The Greenland and Antarctic ice caps both have thin layers of water right at the bottom, next to the bedrock, in most if not all locations.

Answer 4

When the temperature of the water drops below 32 degrees, water freezes.

Answer 5

i've never understood that either but wrap your mind around this:
the winter of 1932 was so cold that niagra falls froze completely SOLID.

everyone should star this question. it's a good one.

Answer 6

It doesn't. The water that freezes is not moving and therefore freezes.

Answer 7

It turns into ice

Answer 8

it reaches a temperature of 32 degrees farenhieght. :)