Abstract
In an experimental study, significantly higher conductivity values than those of freshly prepared chemically analogous solutions were found in aged (~one year old) aqueous solutions, except for those stored frozen. The results surprisingly resemble a previously noticed phenomenon in liquid water, which develops when water is stored in closed vessels. This was observed as a disturbing phenomenon in gravimetric measurements and in luminescence spectroscopy measurements. The phenomenon was termed “autothixotropy of water” due to the weak gel-like behavior which develops spontaneously over time, in which ions seem to play an important role. Here, according to experimental results we propose that contact with hydrophilic surfaces also plays an important role. The role of the “autothixotropy of water” in proton transfer is also discussed.
Highlights
Water is an unusual compound, yet not entirely different from other liquids
This is surprisingly similar to the observations of Vybíral and Voráček [19] who noticed that liquid distilled water, left to stand undisturbed for some time in closed vessels, spontaneously develops “autothixotropic” properties where ions seem to play an important role
We review the possible formation of a structured network of hydrogen bonds between water molecules and ions in aqueous solutions that are left to stand undisturbed for some time, leading to the development of autothixotropic properties where hydrophilic surfaces play an important role
Summary
Water is an unusual compound, yet not entirely different from other liquids. It is generally agreed that the hydrogen bonds that connect water molecules are responsible for its anomalies [1]. All aged solutions (treated and untreated) had significantly higher conductivity values in comparison to the conductivity of chemically analogous fresh solutions and no excess conductivity was found in frozen samples This is surprisingly similar to the observations of Vybíral and Voráček [19] who noticed that liquid distilled water, left to stand undisturbed for some time in closed vessels, spontaneously develops “autothixotropic” properties where ions seem to play an important role. We review the possible formation of a structured network of hydrogen bonds between water molecules and ions in aqueous solutions that are left to stand undisturbed for some time, leading to the development of autothixotropic properties where hydrophilic surfaces play an important role. We propose the autothixotropy to be the cause of the faster proton transfer in aged solutions along the lines of the Grotthuss mechanism, in comparison to proton transfer in freshly prepared solutions with identical chemical composition
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