The Mechanism of Heterogeneous Ice Nucleation by Fatty Alcohol Monolayers.

Organic ice nucleating substances (INSs) are thought to play an essential role in cloud formation and, hence, precipitation and climate. Organic INSs are an important but poorly understood class of INSs in the atmosphere. To study organic INSs with exposed hydroxylated surfaces, researchers have previously used fatty alcohol monolayers as model systems.

Using machine learning with atomistic surface and local water features to predict heterogeneous ice nucleation.

Heterogeneous ice nucleation (HIN) has applications in climate science, nanotechnology, and cryopreservation. Ice nucleation on the earth's surface or in the atmosphere usually occurs heterogeneously involving foreign substrates, known as ice nucleating particles (INPs). Experiments identify good INPs but lack sufficient microscopic resolution to answer the basic question: What makes a good INP? We employ molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in combination with machine learning (ML) to address this question.

Binary salt structure classification with convolutional neural networks: Application to crystal nucleation and melting point calculations.

Convolutional neural networks are constructed and validated for the crystal structure classification of simple binary salts such as the alkali halides. The inputs of the neural network classifiers are the local bond orientational order parameters of Steinhardt, Nelson, and Ronchetti [Phys. Rev.

Influence of pH on Ice Nucleation by Kaolinite: Experiments and Molecular Simulations.

In mixed-phase or ice clouds, ice can be formed through heterogeneous nucleation. A major type of ice-nucleating particle (INP) in the atmosphere are mineral dust particles. For mixed-phase clouds, the pH of water droplets can vary widely and influence ice nucleation by altering the surface of some INPs, including mineral dust.

Resilience of larval wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) to hydrocarbons and other compounds released from naturally weathered diluted bitumen in a boreal lake.

The risks to aquatic wildlife from spills of diluted bitumen (dilbit) into inland waters are poorly understood. In this paper, we describe the response of larval wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) to hydrocarbons and other compounds released from experimental spills of dilbit in a temperate boreal lake. To simulate a wide range of environmentally relevant oil spill scenarios, different volumes of Cold Lake Winter Blend dilbit (0, 1.