liquids generally have lower density as compared to solids,.But why does ice float on water?

Question

pllzzzzzzzzzzzz answer as fast as possible

Answer 1

b/c while u freeze the ice, air gets trapped inside the ice, causing the ice to have less of a density since air is also in the ice cube, Thats y it floats

Answer 2

Because Water is a Special Case, Ice is Less Dense than Liquid Water. See the Pressure-Temperature Curve for Water.

Answer 3

Each water molecule is made of 2 hydrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom. These are connected to one another by very strong chemical bonds called covalent bonds. Water molecules are connected to each other by much weaker chemical bonds called hydrogen bonds between the positively charged hydrogen atoms, and one negatively charged oxygen atom in a neighboring water molecule.

As water gets colder than 4 degrees Celsius (40 Fahrenheit) the hydrogen bonds connecting different water molecules adjust to keep the negatively charged oxygen atoms apart. This results in a crystal latice which begins to form at less than 4 degrees Celsius. This crystal latice is completely formed at freezing, and is commonly known as ice.

So, why does ice float? Like most things that float, ice floats because it is less dense than liquid water. Ice is about 9% less dense. When ice forms, it takes up about 9% more space than it did as a liquid. Thus, a 1 liter container of ice weighs less than a 1 liter container of liquid water, and the lighter material floats to the top. As we said, water is different.

Answer 4

When watter freezes, the water molecules attract each other and link up in chains that use space less efficiently (taking up more room than the water that froze). When ice is cooled it actually shrinks (like everything else) but at a temperature now below that of any surrounding water which is not possible

Answer 5

Water is an exception. When water freezes, the molecules become more spaced out in order to form a crystal lattice causing it to expand. This makes ice less dense than water and therefore it floats.

Answer 6

as you decrease the temperature of the water its density is going to increases.
at 4 Centigrade the water has highest density and it has liquid phase.
AS temp is lowed than 4 C the density of water goes on decreases and solidification of water starts.
at 0C water completely converted in to solid i.e. become ice and now it has less density then its liquid form.
this is why the ice floats on water

Answer 7

.. a little late for me to be fast.. but I still like to give my 2 cents :)

most liquids condense when they change to their solid form.. under normal circumstances ice expands because of it's crystalline structure and the way the molecules rearrange. there are rare cases under very specific circumstances where this does not happen however, in which case Ice behaves as a normal solid.

Answer 8

Water is the only substance that decreases in density when it goes from liquid state to solid state.

Answer 9

The crystaline structure of ice just takes up more space. Kind of like how a tinker toy structure can be bigger than the can of tinker toys.

Consequently, the solid ice takes up more space, so it's less dense and floats. Lucky for the fish!

Answer 10

density is mass on volume
so
in 1 liter (1 dm3) of water is as heavy as 1 dm3 of ice, only the ice (expands) is larger. So if we take 1 cm3 of water and 1 cm3 of ice, the water will be heavier and the ice lighter.... i hope u get it...

Answer 11

It is due to anomaly in characteristic of water (H2O). Usually when temperature of a substance is lower, its volume shrinks, but its mass remains the same, thus its specific gravity gets greater. But when temperature of water getting lower, below 4C, its volume gets greater, thus its specific gravity gets lower. That's why it floats on the water.