water discovered two different liquid states, differing in physical properties and characteristics.
When heated above 50 degrees Celsius, many of the properties of water change dramatically. According to scientists, whose article was published in the journal Nanotechnology, this may indicate the existence of alternative states of liquid water at different temperatures.
Water is widespread on Earth and in the Universe. It accounts for the lion's share of our body weight, and at the same time water remains one of the strangest compounds known to chemistry and physics. For example, its boiling point is very high, and water passes into steam only at 100 degrees Celsius (at a certain pressure), which differs sharply from, for example, hydrogen sulfide or hydrogen telluride. The weak hydrogen bonds that constantly arise and break between water molecules allow it to remain liquid over a wide range of temperatures.
The transformation of ice into water, and then into steam is a classic illustration of phase transitions between various states of matter - solid, liquid and gas. However, experiments carried out by a large team of scientists from the UK, Spain, Mexico and the USA indicate that even with the liquid phase of water, things are not so simple. Eugene Stanley and his co-authors found indications that at 50 ± 10 degrees Celsius, a wide variety of water properties change dramatically.
Scientists tracked a number of key characteristics of liquid water by gradually heating it from 0 to 100 degrees Celsius at normal pressure. On the graphs of changes in each indicator depending on temperature, they found unusual "fractures" of abrupt transitions. In particular, at temperatures around 50 degrees Celsius, the refractive index began to decrease faster, about 53 degrees Celsius, the electrical conductivity began to fall more slowly, and thermal conductivity - at about 64 degrees. For surface tension, the boundary was about 57 degrees.
The results obtained show that within the temperature range from 0 to 100 degrees Celsius, many properties of liquid water pass through the critical point around 50 degrees. According to scientists, this may indicate the existence of two different states of water in the liquid phase: one at low temperatures, the other at high temperatures. The authors conclude that their results are too unusual and need additional confirmation, and the conclusions are too important and require further reflection.
"The question also arises as to how the temperature-induced structural changes in water affect the behavior of biological macromolecules dissolved in it, especially proteins, which are the key functional units of all living cells."
