Possible Further Evidence for the Thixotropic Phenomenon of Water

In this work we review the literature for possible confirmation of a phenomenon that was proposed to develop when water is left to stand for some time undisturbed in closed vessels. The phenomenon has been termed thixotropy of water due to the weak gel-like behaviour which may develop spontaneously over time where ions and contact with hydrophilic surfaces seem to play important roles. Thixotropy is a property of certain gels and liquids that under normal conditions are highly viscous, whereas during mechanical processing their viscosity diminishes. We found experiments indicating water’s self-organizing properties, long-lived inhomogeneities and time-dependent changes in the spectral parameters of aqueous systems. The large-scale inhomogeneities in aqueous solutions seem to occur in a vast number of systems. Long-term spectral changes of aqueous systems were observed even though the source of radiation was switched off or removed. And water was considered to be an active excitable medium in which appropriate conditions for self-organization can be established. In short, the thixotropic phenomenon of water is further indicated by different experimental techniques and may be triggered by large-scale ordering of water in the vicinity of nucleating solutes and hydrophilic surfaces.