NMR evidence of a supramolecular structure of water

Ann Chim. 2003 Apr;93(4):471-6.

Abstract

The hypothesis advanced in this paper is based on the formation of dissipative structures, in the form of supramolecular structures of water, by virtue of its hydrogen bonds, structurally similar to a liquid crystal. The supramolecular structure could be a macromolecule typical of a living organism (plant or animal), which as we know is approximately 80% water, with a complex conformation induced initially by an active principle and which remains, organising itself as a result of an input of energy (dynamisation, electromagnetic wave or other). Water is the most abundant substance on earth and has been very well studied with a number of model structures having been proposed and refined. Notwithstanding this, it remains an anomalous liquid where no single model is able to explain all of its properties. Recently our research group in Siena carried out NMR studies on the water molecule measuring nuclear spin relaxation times T1 and T2. The phenomena observed lead to the conclusion that water and aqueous solutions should be regarded as continuous polymorphous self-organizing systems. At the macro-level the water behaviour is related with biodiversity, the core of biological evolution.

MeSH terms

  • Hydrogen Bonding
  • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
  • Models, Chemical*
  • Water / chemistry*

Substances

  • Water