The freezing of water droplets

Abstract

A microscope method was used to study the freezing of individual water droplets 9 to 33 microns in diameter formed by condensation on various surfaces and protected with a film of silicone oil. The lowest freezing temperatures were found to be independent of the six surfaces used but dependent upon the volume of the water droplets and the rate of cooling. The results were correlated with those of other observers and it was concluded that homogeneous nucleation occurred in the lowest freezing droplets. Values of the surface free energy for a water-ice interface were calculated.