Why does ice float on water?

Answer 1

Ice made with heavy-water will sink in normal water.

Heavy water is water made with Deuterium, a special type (isotope) of Hydrogen which has a nucleus containing 1 proton and 1 neutron (instead of just a single proton).

I think that drinking heavy water is bad (in excess of a certain amount) for you since it takes your body more energy to process it than it does normal water (differences in density, heat capacity, and what-not), so this really isn't much of a solution.

Answer 2

If by ice, you mean frozen water, then it actually will not sink in water. H2O is one of the few compounds on earth that expands when it freezes. This expansion causes ice to be less dense than water and causes it to float on the surface.

An unusual property of ice frozen at a pressure of one atmosphere is that the solid is some 8% less dense than liquid water. Water is the only known non-metallic substance to expand when it freezes. Ice has a density of 0.9167 g/cm³ at 0 °C, whereas water has a density of 0.9998 g/cm³ at the same temperature. Liquid water is most dense, essentially 1.00 g/cm³, at 4 °C and becomes less dense as the water molecules begin to form the hexagonal crystals of ice as the temperature drops to 0 °C. (In fact, the word "crystal" derives from Greek word for frost.) This is due to hydrogen bonds forming between the water molecules, which line up molecules less efficiently (in terms of volume) when water is frozen. The result of this is that ice floats on liquid water, an important factor in Earth's climate. Density of ice increases slightly with decreasing temperature (density of ice at −180 °C (93 K) is 0.9340 g/cm³).

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Answer 3

Not really. Ice is less dense than water so it'll float

Answer 4

The specific gravity of ice is 0.9168 compared with water which is 0.9998,therefore ice floats - as do icebergs

Answer 5

so that the fish swimming in the lakes dont die over winter

Answer 6

because its less denser than water

Answer 7

Ice does not sink in water.

Answer 8

I’ve is less dense than liquid water.