My freezer is set at -21°C (-6°F) and tubs of ice cream come out hard as a rock and are near impossible to scoop. But if I set it a few degrees warmer, yet still way below the freezing point of water, I can scoop it easily. So, is there such a thing as both frozen and *really* frozen? Conversely, a boiling point is a boiling point, I believe. Heating water to a temp above 100°C gets you the same steam that you got at 100, just faster. Right?
In: 102
No. There is no such thing as frozen and really frozen. Before looking at ice cream, we have to understand molecules. As you already know, water is an oxygen atom connected to two hydrogen atoms. When molecules bind to each other, they become bound which is the frozen state. Now when frozen, the molecules are bound like bricks on a house. They can’t “move” but they can vibrate. So, at the molecular level, they cannot freeze harder when they are already bound to other water molecules like bricks.
Ice cream is obviously different, not exactly pure water. For this instance, Impurities are classified as things different from a water molecules like elements ranging from sodium, iron, magnesium to complex molecular compounds like citrus, fats, proteins, carbohydrates, and salts. We have created ice cream combining these elements and compounds with water. The impurities is what makes it easier to break or weaken a substance, in this case ice cream. That few degrees warmer is the “breaking/scooping” point of those impurities because they are not frozen even though water molecules are frozen within the ice cream.
Answer your other question, yes. If you add more energy you reach your goal faster.
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