By Manipulating Condensation Conditions, Researchers Create Room-Temperature Ice | Popular Science

By Manipulating Condensation Conditions, Researchers Create Room-Temperature Ice | Popular Science: "Frankdicksonite has the desired hexagonal structure, but the Spanish team found it to be a less-than-ideal ice-nucleating material. Except for when its structure has imperfections. When BaF₂has surface defects, its ability to spur condensation greatly improves. At the point of the surface defects, water tends to form tiny two-dimensional icy patches even under normal ambient conditions.

The finding could swing open the door for a new kind of synthetic, environmentally friendly material that spurs ice formation at higher temperatures. The team is currently working on just such a material, with hopes of later creating what they call "intelligent surfaces" that can manipulate water in specific ways."