THE STUDY OF MELTING ICE CUBES WITH SALT

Daniel

Cary Academy

ABSTRACT

There are not many experiments done with salt and ice and the ones that are done, are
usually done on roads. The amount of salt, ice cubes, and type of salt were tested to
see which way was the best way to melt ice. According to the results of this experiment
more salt or ice does not improve how fast the ice melts. The size of the salt grain does
sometimes affect the melting process of ice.

INTRODUCTION

In this experiment, three types of a Na+C1- (Sodium

Chloride: Iodized, Kosher, and Sea Salt) were
tested to see which one would melt an ice cube the
fastest. Since salt is often used to melt ice on
roads in the winter and to keep roads from
freezing, it is assumed that salt would melt its way
through the ice cubes. Salt melts ice by breaking
the water molecules in an ice cube apart and
lowering the melting or freezing point of the ice.
According to known research about ice, as the salt or Na+C1 -
F1. dissolves, itssalt
The forming of ions mix
when into
water evaporates
the water or ice lowering its freezing point. According to the research, Na+C1- lowers
the freezing point of water to approximately 15o F causing the ice to melt more quickly.

Salt is a compound of two ions sodium and chloride (Na+C1-). A compound is two ions
that have formed together like Sodium and Chloride. Salt is formed by having Na+C1- in
water and when the water evaporates the two of these things form together making salt.
An ice cube is a group of water molecules that have formed or frozen into the solid
shape or size of the container the liquid was in. When salt is put on an ice cube, the salt
begins to dissolve. The two ions that make up salt now begin to break apart. Once this
happens, the two ions lower the freezing point of the frozen water which causes the ice
to slowly melt.

The three types of salt used in this experiment are all made of the same type of crystal
– Na+C1-. Iodized salt consists of small, compact cubic grains or granules. Kosher salt
grains are much more irregular and have a larger surface area. Sea salt grains are the
largest of the three types.

Sure-Gro, Inc. notes that an ice melter’s granule size and surface area both affect the
melting process. According to their research, the smaller granules can get the melting
process off to a faster start but may completely dissolve before they melt all the way
through the ice. Thus the ice cube is likely not to melt when smaller salt granules are
used. Likewise, since salt is mostly used on icy roads, scientists have found that using
salts with small granules dissolves quickly but never melts all the way down to the road.
This means that the thawed ice would merely refreeze on the road and become even
more dangerous. However, larger particles or granules typically have a slower melting
action, but can penetrate further into the ice cube because the salt takes longer to
dissolve. Though the larger granules have a good long term effect when used on roads,
their slow melting action makes them ineffective for getting rid of ice quickly so cars can
drive on it. Thus, scientists have found that the most effective way to melt ice both
quickly and thoroughly is to use medium-sized salt granules.

The hypothesis used in this experiment was that the largest of the three grained salts
(the Sea Salt), when given more time, would melt more of the ice cube than the other
two types of salt. Though the two smaller salts may start melting the ice cube quicker,
the Sea Salt will end up melting more of the ice cube as time goes by. Overall the
hypothesis was that the Sea Salt would melt the ice the more thoroughly than the
Iodized and Kosher salts because of the granule size and more salt would melt more
ice. Also that more ice would melt more quickly so the more amounts would increase
the speed of the melting process.
MATERIALS AND METHOD

In the following three experiments these materials were used a beaker, a graduated
cylinder, a stopwatch, ice cubes, of Sea and Kosher salt, and iodized salt.

In this first experiment an ice cube was put into a beaker and a teaspoon of salt was
placed on the ice cube. A stopwatch was started and at 10 min the ice cube was thrown
away. The water in the beaker was then poured into a graduated cylinder and
measured. This process was done 3 times for each type of salt (Sea, kosher, and
iodized salt) and an average was taken.

In the next experiment an ice cube was placed in a beaker and 2 t of iodized salt were
placed on the ice cube. A stopwatch was started and after 15 min the ice cube was
thrown away. The water in the beaker was then poured into a graduated cylinder and
measured. This procedure was repeated three times for 2, 3, & 4 t, and an average was
taken.

For this final experiment an ice cube was put in a beaker with 2 t of salt put on it. A
stopwatch was started and after 15 min the water was put into a graduated cylinder and
measured. This procedure was again repeated three times for 1, 2, and 3 ice cubes and
an average was taken.
RESULTS

In this first experiment the Sea Salt melted the ice the fastest (5.1 mL) and the Kosher
Salt melted the ice the slowest (3.5 mL).

F2. The melting of ice using 3 different Na+C1- salts.

In the second experiment 2 t of salt melted the ice the fastest (5.6 mL) and 4 t melted
the ice the slowest (3.4 mL).
F3. The melting of ice cubes using different amounts of salt.

In the last experiment 2 ice cubes melted the fastest (10 mL) and 1 ice cube melted the
slowest.

F4. The testing of melting different numbers of ice cubes at the same rate.

DISCUSSION
Salt is a compound of 2 ions Na+C1-, these 2 ions form together after the water they’re
in evaporates and when they form together they form salt. Sea salt is made up of the
same normal compound but is bigger than other Na+C1- salts because other pollution in
the water mixes in creating a bigger salt grain. The granule size is the size of the salt
grain. Iodized salt is what is put on food and is the smallest of the 3 Na+C1- salts
because it has fewer pollutants in it.

Ice is made of water molecules that have stopped moving and taken a form. Molecules
slow down as their temperature decreases this is the same with water molecules except
they stop moving as their temperature gets below freezing point. As the molecules
temperature increases they start moving faster and faster and become a liquid as the
molecules break from their form.

Salt is often used on roads to melt any ice. Salt melts ice by lowering the freezing point
of water causing it to slowly melt. Some salts with smaller granules dissolve before they
fully melt through the ice. The data in this experiment may not be fully accurate because
the salt absorbed most of the water.

CONCLUSION

For the first experiment the Sea salt made the highest average of melted ice (5.1 mL),
and for the second experiment 2 teaspoons made the highest average of melted ice
(5.6 mL). For the last and final experiment 2 ice cubes made the highest average of
melted ice (10 mL). The hypothesis of this experiment was that Sea salt would melt the
ice the fastest, that 3 teaspoons would melt the ice the quickest, and 3 ice cubes would
melt the fastest. The first hypothesis involving Sea salt proved to be true, but the results
proved the remaining two hypotheses to be incorrect.

A variable that may have affected the results of this experiment was that salt can be
very absorbent and may absorb most of the water. Also in the first experiment the ice
was set to melt for ten minutes and in the second and third experiment it was set to melt
for 15 minutes. Two other experiments that could have been done to test salt on ice
were freezing water with different amounts of salt put in and measuring the temperature.
Another would be to put the three types of salts on ice for an hour and measured the
temperature of the water.

CITATIONS

Alan Eastep. “Salt.” Alan’s Kitchen. Alan’s Kitchen Foundation, Inc. 2010. Web. 21 Jan.
2010.

Anne Marie Helmenstine. “Melting Snow & Ice with Salt.” About.com. The New York
Times Company. 2010. Web. 23 Jan. 2010.

Sure Gro Inc. “Effective Melting Temperature.” Ice Melting Solutions. Sure Gro Inc.
2008. Web. 20 Jan. 2010.

The National Energy Education Development Project. “Frozen Salt.” The NEED Project.
2010. Web. 22 Jan. 2010.