Ice vs. Environment

Overview

Objectives/Goals This project was used to find if there is an environmentally friendly way to melt ice. Methods/Materials Snow freezes over road and forms very slippery ice. the ice is melted bysalt which is bad for the environment. In order to find a more eco-friendly ice-melting alternative, various substances (table salt, epsom salt, fertilizer, cat litter, play sand, plaster sand, and gravel) were spread atop ice blocks to test the aterial's ice-melting abilities. the same substances were mixed into tap water and used to water petunia plants. Results Table salt, epsom salt and fertilizer all acted the same (killed plants and melted ice quickly). Plaster sand and cat litter both sustainde the life of the plants, but didn't melt the ice very well. Play sand (a light colored sand) and gravel were both balanced substances meaning that they could melt ice and sustain the life of plants. Conclusions/Discussion Either a light colored sand or a gravel will be better to use than salt if the instance isn't urgent and the ice situation isn't too severe. if quick ice melting is a major safety issue, salt will be a beter alternative to melt the ice.

Competition history

• CSEF 2009 Environmental Engineering (Junior Division Only) · Entry J1130

Resources

• CSEF project summary ↗

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