Freezing Points of Liquids

Most recent answer: 12/15/2012

Q:
Hello,please tell me if there is a liquid that freezes itself at pozitive temperatures (above 0 Celsius) and it's not harmfull for human life (poisonous,or else).Thank you very much.M
- Muresan Dumitru (age 30)
Romania
A:
Sure, there are many such chemicals.  Typical edible fats fall in this category. For example, oleic acid melts at about 13°C.  Cocoa butter, although a mixture of different fats, still has a fairly sharp melting point of about 36°C.

It's important to realize that 0°C doesn't separate "positive" from "negative" temperatures in any deep sense. It's just the melting point of ice, chosen as the "zero" of one common temperature scale for some historical convenience.

Mike W.

(published on 12/15/2012)