Oceanography

Density of sea ice

The density of sea ice depends mainly on its air-content or porosity, the amount of enclosed brine and the freezing temperature. According to Schwerdtfeger (1963), the density of sea ice is related to the air-content,and brine enclosed. Density of ice can be given by equation

r _t = (1 – a ) ( 1+ 4.56 S / T) 0.917

Where, r _t is the density of the sea ice in g/cm³, a is the air content in volume per cent, S is the salinity in parts per thousand and T is the temperature in ^oC. Pure fresh water ice has a density of 0.91676 at 0^oC, while pure water in the liquid state has a density of 0.999867 at 0^oC. The density of sea ice varies both above and below that of pure ice, i.e., above and below 0.91676 depending upon brine content in the ice and air-content.