Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Controlling the Size, Shape and Stability of Supramolecular Polymers in Water
Published on: August 2, 2012
Molecular dynamics studies on the thermodynamics of supercooled sodium chloride aqueous solution at different
D Corradini1, P Gallo, M Rovere
1Dipartimento di Fisica, Università Roma Tre, Via della Vasca Navale 84, I-00146 Roma, Italy.
Abstract:
In this paper we compare recent results obtained by means of molecular dynamics computer simulations on the thermodynamics of TIP4P bulk water and on solutions of sodium chloride in TIP4P water. The concentrations studied are c = 0.67, 1.36 and 2.10 mol kg( - 1). The results are checked against change of water-salt potential and size effects. The systems are studied in a wide range of temperatures, going from ambient temperature to the supercooled region. Analysis of simulated state points, performed on the isochores and on the isotherm plane, allowed the determination of the limit of mechanical stability and of the temperature of maximum density lines. While the presence of ions in the system does not affect the limit of mechanical stability with respect to the bulk, it causes the temperature of the maximum density line to shift to lower pressure and temperature upon increasing concentration. The occurrence of minima in the trend of potential energy as a function of density and the inflections in the low temperature isotherms suggest the presence of liquid-liquid coexistence for bulk water and for the sodium chloride solutions at all concentrations studied.
Related Concept Videos
Liquid–Solid Solutions
SN2 Reaction: Kinetics
In a chemical reaction, a relationship exists between the concentration of reactants and the rate at which the reaction proceeds. The study to measure this relationship is known as the kinetics of a chemical reaction. Kinetic studies are used to deduce the rate law of a chemical reaction, which provides information about the species involved during the transition state of the rate-determining step. Thus, kinetic studies help to derive the mechanism of a reaction.
The Debye–Hückel Theory of Electrolyte Solutions
Electrolytes: van't Hoff Factor
Thermodynamics: Activity Coefficient
The activity coefficient is a measure of the deviation from ideal behavior. When the ionic strength of the solution is minimal, the activity coefficient of an ionic species is close to unity, making...
Molecular and Ionic Solids
Molecular Solids
Molecular crystalline solids, such as ice, sucrose (table sugar), and iodine, are solids that are composed of neutral molecules as their constituent units. These molecules are held together by weak intermolecular forces such as London dispersion forces, dipole-dipole interactions, or hydrogen bonds, which...

