Question

Explain why ice melts when salt is placed on its surface

Answer 1

Ice forms when the­ temperature of water reaches 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius). When you add salt, that temperature drops: A 10-percent salt solution freezes at 20 F (-6 C), and a 20-percent solution freezes at 2 F (-16 C). This means that if you place salt on the surface of ice, it melt s. The salt dissolves into the liquid water in the ice and lowers its freezing point.