Observation of impurities in ice
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 3, 2026

Label-Free Imaging of Single Proteins Secreted from Living Cells via iSCAT Microscopy
Published on: November 20, 2018
1Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755-8000, USA.
Abstract:
This paper presents a new method for determining the microstructural location of impurities in polycrystalline ice, which involves allowing the ice to sublimate under vacuum and then identifying the concentrated impurities using energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis in a low-vacuum scanning electron microscope. The method allows the presence of impurities in both the grain boundaries and the lattice of natural polycrystalline ice to be observed. Using this technique on natural ice, filaments consisting chiefly of NaCl were observed in some grain boundaries, small amounts of sulfur and chlorine were found in the grain interiors of the ice, and large concentrations of sulfur were observed in inclusions.
More Related Videos
09:43Identification of Plant Ice-binding Proteins Through Assessment of Ice-recrystallization Inhibition and Isolation Using Ice-affinity Purification
Published on: May 5, 2017
07:103D Depth Profile Reconstruction of Segregated Impurities Using Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry
Published on: April 29, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS): Interferences
Washing, Drying, and Ignition of Precipitates
Types of Coprecipitation
Sometimes, ions in a crystal lattice can undergo isomorphous replacement by inclusions of similar charge and size. For...
Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy: Interference
Spectral interference occurs when signals from other elements or molecules overlap with the analyte signal, falsely elevating or masking the analyte's absorbance. This interference can be corrected using Zeeman,...
Inductively Coupled Plasma–Mass Spectrometry (ICP–MS): Overview
Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy: Principle
The ions and electrons produced interact with the fluctuating magnetic field created by a water-cooled...