[ELI5] Can one physically compress water, like with a cyclinder of water with a hydraulic press on the top, completely water tight, pressing down on it, and what would happen to the water?

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[ELI5] Can one physically compress water, like with a cyclinder of water with a hydraulic press on the top, completely water tight, pressing down on it, and what would happen to the water?

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69 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Just replying to say I’m struggling to keep up with all the replies but I am extremely grateful to all of you for making the effort, what a fantastic community this is, you are all the change we want to see in the world, if I could reply to them all then I would

Anonymous 0 Comments

What fascinating reading you have all provided here. Thank you.

I’ve been interested in water as a subject of science since I was a little kid… when I read a sci-fi comic book story that dealt with a supply of super-compressed water in a matchbox-sized container, supposedly holding a massive amount of water, and how dangerous it would be if it was unleashed. Later, there was an explanation that the story was total fantasy, of course, and then joked about the possibility of someone inventing powdered water, hahaha. If only, eh?!

Anonymous 0 Comments

What fascinating reading you have all provided here. Thank you.

I’ve been interested in water as a subject of science since I was a little kid… when I read a sci-fi comic book story that dealt with a supply of super-compressed water in a matchbox-sized container, supposedly holding a massive amount of water, and how dangerous it would be if it was unleashed. Later, there was an explanation that the story was total fantasy, of course, and then joked about the possibility of someone inventing powdered water, hahaha. If only, eh?!

Anonymous 0 Comments

What fascinating reading you have all provided here. Thank you.

I’ve been interested in water as a subject of science since I was a little kid… when I read a sci-fi comic book story that dealt with a supply of super-compressed water in a matchbox-sized container, supposedly holding a massive amount of water, and how dangerous it would be if it was unleashed. Later, there was an explanation that the story was total fantasy, of course, and then joked about the possibility of someone inventing powdered water, hahaha. If only, eh?!

Anonymous 0 Comments

Yes, you can compress water a little, if you do, it gets a bit more dense. The molecules get a little closer together, and want to spread out again, a bit like stretching a rubber band, but in reverse.

Liquids in general hardly compress at all. Some liquids compress more than others. Water compresses quite a bit, compared to brake fluid, which is chosen because it hardly compresses at all. If you were to replace your car’s brake fluid with water (DON’T DO IT, IT’S NOT SAFE TO DRIVE LIKE THAT), the brake pedal would feel “Spongy” as the fluid in the lines compressed rather than transferring the energy to the brakes..

Anonymous 0 Comments

Yes, you can compress water a little, if you do, it gets a bit more dense. The molecules get a little closer together, and want to spread out again, a bit like stretching a rubber band, but in reverse.

Liquids in general hardly compress at all. Some liquids compress more than others. Water compresses quite a bit, compared to brake fluid, which is chosen because it hardly compresses at all. If you were to replace your car’s brake fluid with water (DON’T DO IT, IT’S NOT SAFE TO DRIVE LIKE THAT), the brake pedal would feel “Spongy” as the fluid in the lines compressed rather than transferring the energy to the brakes..

Anonymous 0 Comments

Yes, you can compress water a little, if you do, it gets a bit more dense. The molecules get a little closer together, and want to spread out again, a bit like stretching a rubber band, but in reverse.

Liquids in general hardly compress at all. Some liquids compress more than others. Water compresses quite a bit, compared to brake fluid, which is chosen because it hardly compresses at all. If you were to replace your car’s brake fluid with water (DON’T DO IT, IT’S NOT SAFE TO DRIVE LIKE THAT), the brake pedal would feel “Spongy” as the fluid in the lines compressed rather than transferring the energy to the brakes..

Anonymous 0 Comments

We regularly compress water in diamond vices, where the changing structure of the water can be studied through the diamond as the pressure is increased to enormous levels:
https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-finally-study-strange-black-superionic-ice-that-could-exist-on-alien-worlds

Essentially, under these conditions, water forms rare structures that are described as “ice” but which are extremely hot and cannot exist under normal pressures.

Anonymous 0 Comments

We regularly compress water in diamond vices, where the changing structure of the water can be studied through the diamond as the pressure is increased to enormous levels:
https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-finally-study-strange-black-superionic-ice-that-could-exist-on-alien-worlds

Essentially, under these conditions, water forms rare structures that are described as “ice” but which are extremely hot and cannot exist under normal pressures.

Anonymous 0 Comments

We regularly compress water in diamond vices, where the changing structure of the water can be studied through the diamond as the pressure is increased to enormous levels:
https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-finally-study-strange-black-superionic-ice-that-could-exist-on-alien-worlds

Essentially, under these conditions, water forms rare structures that are described as “ice” but which are extremely hot and cannot exist under normal pressures.