Pressure melting point

Pressure melting point

This term is used in the glaciological literature to refer to the melting point of ice under pressure. As the pressure increases in the downward direction, the melting temperature of ice decreases. This pressure melting point can reach values many degrees below 0°C.

Due to geothermal heat flux from below, the temperature at the same time increases. The level where ice can start melting is where the pressure melting point equals the actual temperature. In static equilibrium conditions, this would be the highest level where water can exist in a glacier. It would also be the level of the base of an ice shelf, or the ice-water interface of a subglacial lake.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • pressure melting point —   under a glacier, the pressure brought to bear by the mass of ice above can lower the freezing/meting point of water …   Geography glossary

  • Melting point depression — is a term referring to the phenomenon of reduction of the melting point of a material with reduction of its size. This phenomenon is very prominent in nanoscale materials which melt at temperatures hundreds of degrees lower than bulk… …   Wikipedia

  • Melting point — Melting Melt ing, n. Liquefaction; the act of causing (something) to melt, or the process of becoming melted. [1913 Webster] {Melting point} (Chem.), the degree of temperature at which a solid substance melts or fuses; as, the melting point of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Melting point — For the physical processes that takes place at the melting point, see Melting, Freezing and Crystallization The melting point of a solid is the temperature at which it changes state from solid to liquid. At the melting point the solid and liquid… …   Wikipedia

  • Melting-point depression — This article deals with melting/freezing point depression due to very small particle size. For depression due to the mixture of another compound, see freezing point depression. Melting point depression is a term referring to the phenomenon of… …   Wikipedia

  • melting point —    The melting point or freezing point of a pure substance is the temperature at which its crystals are in equilibrium with the liquid phase at atmosphere pressure …   Forensic science glossary

  • melting point — /ˈmɛltɪŋ pɔɪnt / (say melting poynt) noun the equilibrium temperature of the solid and liquid phases of a substance in the presence of a specified gas at a specified pressure (usually air at a pressure of 101.325 kilopascals) …  

  • melting point — noun The temperature at which the solid and liquid phases of a substance are in equilibrium; it is relatively insensitive to changes in pressure See Also: boiling point, freezing point, triple point …   Wiktionary

  • melting point — Temperature at atmospheric pressure at which a substance will melt …   Dictionary of automotive terms

  • List of elements by melting point — This is a list of the chemical elements, sorted by melting point measured at normal pressure.Table The melting points of these elements are not yet known *rutherfordium *dubnium *seaborgium *bohrium *hassium *meitnerium *darmstadtium *roentgenium …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”