When ice melts, it goes from a solid straight to a liquid. Why isn’t there some sort of pasty intermediary state? If the states of matter are about the proximity of a body’s particles, then it’d make sense for the ice to get softer and softer until it turns to water, right?
In: Chemistry
The mechanical properties of materials can change with temperature. For example, blacksmiths heat up chunks of iron and steel before working them because the metal is softer and more malleable when it’s hot enough to glow red. We can even heat steel up to different temperatures and cool it to change how hard and strong it is. Phases of matter are defined by how well molecules stick together though, not by these other properties. In a solid, the molecules are held together very tightly. If you hit a piece of ice with a hammer, it would chip and break, likewise a piece of steel might dent or bend. In a liquid, the molecules are loosely held together, which is why liquids can flow, there is enough attraction to keep the molecules from just shooting off to on their own, but not enough for it to have a defined shape like a solid does. In a gas, there is very little, if anything holding all of the molecules in one spot, which is why gases expand to fill a container.
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