Scientists discover how bending salted ice can generate electricity

Technology Nov 16, 2025

A team from Xi'an Jiaotong University found that bending salted ice can actually create electricity—a phenomenon called flexoelectricity.
Adding salt makes this effect about 1,000 times stronger, especially when the ice is about a quarter salt.

How does it work?

Salt stops ice from freezing solid, leaving tiny liquid channels between crystals.
When you bend the ice, these salty layers shift and send ions moving, which generates an electric current.

Why does it matter?

Since almost 10% of Earth is covered in ice, this could be a cool new way to make energy in places like the Arctic or even on icy moons.
Right now it's not super efficient—powering a phone would take hundreds of square meters of bent ice—but researchers are working to make it more practical.