Heathrow security insists that ice is a liquid

boing
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I know you aren’t defending the stupid liquid rule they enforce so this isn’t really directed at you per se but it is a lot more complicated then the people in this thread are making it, really the current state is the only sane way to judge.

I’ve been told in the past that they allow frozen liquids by TSA security personnel. Do they actually define at room temp and what room temp is or is that merely wistful rationalization by readers of this thread? I’m fairly certain it is the latter…

1 second of googling and yep wistful thinking on commentors parts, it isn’t at all related to room temp it is merely at time of screening, you CAN freeze liquids and bring them through as solids:
http://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=meatball&src=tsadotgov

The reasons are obvious when you actually think about it:

Temperature: What is room temperature…whose room and where in the world?
Many places in the world a chocolate bar would be liquid, if your candy bar melts should you not be able to bring it? In many northern countries, and times of year, things like peanut butter are solid, but right in the middle of the room temp range they turn liquid, same with many oils, take coconut oil for example.

Crystallization: Temp isn’t always the factor from liquid to solid. Honey can be liquid at room temperature, or the the sugar can have crystallized and it can be a solid. Many salt solutions have similar properties, they can be liquid or solid with room temp range. Many lipids/fats/waxes are the same way. the difference between chapstick and vasaline is only a sight difference in the wax lipid ratios, but both can melt in reasonable room temp range and solidify in room temp range, one more solid then the other which makes an almost solid gel.

There are dozens of factors that play into this and it is much more complex then people here are making it out to be, really the only sane approach is “current state”, which is why that is exactly what they do.

Don’t even get me started on things that can’t be classified as one or the other. It gets even worse when you consider that many items are inbetween liquid and sold states, or combinations of liquid and solid states. Many pastes are actually dampened fine particle solids, all the particles are solid but you can still smear it. There are gels that are almost solid there are liquids with such low viscosity as to be near solid (see the tar pitch experiment.) etc.

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Not really responding to your general argument, but to this particular point: shouldn’t the “room” be a typical airplane cabin? I think I read 22-23C is a common temperature, but I guess it varies.

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perhaps, but unless the screening checkpoints all bring every item to that temp before letting it pass, there isn’t really any way for them to check the items state at that temp range, and also temp isn’t the only factor in solid/liquid state change can cascade from crystallization etc. the direction you approach the temp rage at also matters, waxes melt at higher temps then are required to keep them liquid as to most fats so if you approach the same temp range from high you’ll still have a liquid or from low you’ll still have a solid.

there are a lot of reasons why they don’t go off of this and simply stick to current state. it is the only way that really makes sense which is why that is their basis.

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This happened basically at the security checkpoint. Here’s another… Blowing up security checkpoints is a time-honoured guerrilla tactic; I’ve heard of it being used in places like Algeria under French occupation, in the Israel/Palestine conflict,… Probably, right now they think it’s more effective to let people terrorise themselves with complicated security checks than to waste non-renewable suicide bomber resources on blowing up security…

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You know very well what “room temperature” means. You’re just being deliberately obtuse so you can have an argument. Kinda like the guy in the article, actually!

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It is fairly well defined. Usually it is considered in the ballpark of 20-26 °C.

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This is pretty stupid: ice is just frozen water, and water is a liquid at room temperature. Unless the plane temperature is below zero there’s no way a block of ice can be considered a solid.

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Even if they had let it through, it would just have been flat when it thawed back out, so really, why bother?

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The post title is also skewed, should be: “Heathrow security insists that ice AT CABIN TEMPERATURE is a liquid” or “Idiot insists that ice won’t melt in a plane cabin”. But I see the point here is to bash airport security so, ok…

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Again, though - this is Heathrow, so not the TSA.

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I remember reading about an artist who sealed some glass jars with air and labeled them things such as “Nitrogen: 78%”… As I recall they weren’t allowed on the plane.

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What if I have a block of Ice-nine?

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Then I don’t want you bringing that shit on a plane, or really taking it anywhere out of a super-secure, controlled lab environment.

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Get whacked over face with a wet sock.
Get whacked over face with a chunk of ice in a sock.
What option will you pick, assuming there is no way a block of ice can be considered a solid?

Some people hate the bubbles. Evict them from the liquid, and it is more enjoyable to drink. And no burps as a bonus.

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Oh, didn’t catch that…Heathrow also doesn’t base their liquid rules based on state at room temp, so that is still incorrect wistful thinking on commenters parts.

They specifically classify possible liquids into classes, and only have restrictions on the sizes on certain classes. “Drinks” are one of the restricted classes regardless of state or temp.

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In other news: YOU didn’t say “Simon Says”, and furthermore, Stop Hitting Yourself.

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No kidding. I was coming back through Heathrow from my mother’s funeral with a bag full of “family silver” as I thought of it. Turns out the TSA thought of it as a big bag of knives and other pointy objects. It honestly didn’t occur to me that my heirloom flatware might be considered a risk. The agent heard my story, took one of the knives, poked his own hand with it to see how sharp it was, and told me to carry on. Nice guy.

I’m glad he didn’t test the turkey fork though - that thing is a deadly weapon for sure.

Ah, but is it a drink if you can’t drink it? And isn’t everything a drink at some temperature, albeit not necessarily a tasty one?

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No, lots of things aren’t potential liquids. Most cloth, for instance. Meat. Other complex substances that break down rather than simply melting.

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