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Ice Outperforms Water in Dissolving Iron, Study Finds

9/24/2025

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Summary

Story summary

New research in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) shows ice dissolves iron minerals better than water.
Ice at -10°C dissolves more iron than water at 4°C.
Ice forms microscopic liquid pockets that act as reactors.
Repeated freeze-thaw cycles release organics, increasing iron dissolution, with implications for acidic environments like mine drainage and orange Arctic rivers.

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Story summary

New research in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) shows ice dissolves iron minerals better than water.
Ice at -10°C dissolves more iron than water at 4°C.
Ice forms microscopic liquid pockets that act as reactors.
Repeated freeze-thaw cycles release organics, increasing iron dissolution, with implications for acidic environments like mine drainage and orange Arctic rivers.