Density of Ice at 0 °C
| Value | 917 kg/m³ |
| Status | Measured: ± 2 kg/m³ (0.0022 relative) |
| Source | CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 104th ed. |
| Categories | Material PropertiesEngineering & Tradefluids |
| kilogram per cubic meter | 917 kg/m³ |
| gram per cubic centimeter | 0.917 g/cm³ |
| gram per milliliter | 0.917 g/mL |
| kilogram per liter | 0.917 kg/L |
| pound per cubic foot | 57.24644 lb/ft³ |
| pound per US gallon | 7.6527359 lb/gal |
Learning zone
Freezing water expands by about 9 % of its liquid volume, because the hydrogen bonds in hexagonal ice hold the molecules in an open cage that is less efficiently packed than the jostling liquid. The density ratio 917/1000 also fixes the iceberg: about 92 % of floating ice sits below the waterline, since a floating body displaces its own mass.
Engineering-wise, this is the number behind every burst pipe and spalled slab. Water confined while freezing generates hydrostatic pressures in the tens of megapascals, far beyond copper tube or concrete tensile capacity, which is why freeze protection is a containment problem rather than an insulation problem — insulation only delays it. Ice density falls slightly as it cools further (about 919 kg/m³ at −20 °C) and glacier ice with trapped air can be well under 900 kg/m³, so treat 917 as clean, bubble-free ice at the melting point.