New discovery about the motion of water molecules

A new study shows the motion of water molecules, promising to bring more improvements to electronic devices in the future.

A new approach to studying water viscosity has revealed new insights into the behavior of water molecules and could open the way for electronic devices to use fluids.

The viscosity of a fluid is a parameter representing the internal friction of the flow. When adjacent fluids have different movement speeds, in addition to collisions between matter particles there is also exchange of momentum between them. The elements in the high-speed flow will increase the kinetic energy of the slow-moving stream and vice versa, the matter from slow flows will inhibit the movement of the fast flow. As a result, there is a tangential stress that causes friction (internal friction) - according to Wikipedia.

The dynamics of oxygen-oxygen binding between water molecules are not random but highly coordinated.

According to Phys, a team of researchers led by Oak Ridge National Energy Laboratory uses a high-resolution X-ray scattering technique to measure close bonding involving a hydrogen atom sandwiched between two oxygen atom. This hydrogen bond is a quantum mechanical phenomenon responsible for the different properties of water, including viscosity - it determines the water's ability to withstand water or change its shape.

Water is the most abundant substance in the world but its activity at the molecular level is not well understood.

Takeshi Egami, a famous scientist from Tennessee-ORNL University, said: "We need to better understand the country to open its great potential, especially in information technology and energy."

The team's work is published in Science Advances, which demonstrates that the dynamics of water and other liquids can be explored in real time. Previous studies have provided photographs of the atomic structure of water, but few know how water molecules move.

Egami said: "Hydrogen bonding has a strong impact on the dynamic correlation between molecules as they travel through space and time. But so far, the main data is the optical laser spectrum, bringing about wide or "vague" with low detail ".

To get a clearer picture, the ORNL-UT team used an advanced X-ray technique called inelastic X-ray scattering to determine molecular motion. They found that the dynamics of oxygen-oxygen binding between water molecules were not random but highly coordinated. When the water molecules link is interrupted, strong hydrogen bonds maintain a stable environment for a certain period of time.

Egami said: "We found that the time needed for a molecule to change its neighbor molecule would determine the viscosity of the water . " This new discovery will stimulate further research on controlling the viscosity of other liquids.

Egami saw his current job as a springboard for further research to promote neutron scattering techniques . The researchers' approach can also be used to describe molecular behavior and viscosity of ionic, salt and other liquids, helping to develop new types of semiconductor devices with insulation. Better liquid, battery and lubricant improved.