SEA ICE - A CAST TECHNIQUE TO EXAMINE AND ANALYZE BRINE POCKETS AND CHANNEL STRUCTURE

A casting technique was developed to examine the internal structure of sea ice using scanning electron microscopy. After removal of brine by centrifugation at in situ temperatures, water-soluble resin is deployed to penetrate drained brine channels of sea ice. The resin is subsequently polymerized under UV light at about -12-degrees-C. Freeze-drying eliminates the ice by sublimation, and the hardened casts can be mounted for microscopical analysis. Casts can be used to determine volume and extent of habitable space in different types of sea ice. The extracted brine is available for further studies of sea-ice organisms.