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- For the sport manufacturer, see Brine, Inc.
Brine is water saturated or nearly saturated with salt. It is used (now less popular than historically) to preserve vegetables, fish, and meat. Although brine is used in preservation much like sugar or vinegar, it can be used to great effect in transportation. Brine is a common fluid used in the transport of heat from place to place. It is used because the addition of salt to water reduces the freezing temperature of the solution and a relatively great efficiency in the transport can be obtained for the low cost of the material.
At 60ºF (15.5°C) saturated brine is 26.4% salt by weight (100 degree SAL). At 0°C (32ºF) brine can only hold 23.3% salt.
| Water salinity based on dissolved salts in parts per thousand (‰) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresh water | Brackish water | Saline water | Brine |
| < 0.5 ‰ | 0.5 - 30 ‰ | 30 - 50 ‰ | > 50 ‰ |
Brine lakes
Large expanses of water can develop into brine lakes. Most brine lakes, like the Dead Sea or Great Salt Lake in Utah, develop as a result of high evaporation rates in an arid climate with a lack of an outlet to the ocean. The salt in these bodies of water comes from either minerals washed into the body of water from the surrounding land or from a geologically old, previous connection to the ocean. While the water evaporates from the lake, the minerals and salt remain as they have no outlet into the ocean. Thus, the lake's water becomes brine and with it the lake becomes a brine lake. Brine lakes produce greater levels of buoyancy than others, due to the hightened levels of salt particles in the water.
In other locations, a body of water abutting the sea may have a salinity between that of sea and fresh water. This is sometimes described as brackish which is between 0.05% and 3% salt content. An example is the Etang de Vaccares and surrounding waters in the Camargue.
Man-made brine ponds, usually located along an ocean shore, are a source of commercial table salt, which is obtained by evaporating and purifying seawater. Commercial table salt is also obtained by way of a salt mine. Towns in poorer communities can gain valuable commerce from trading salt derived from these brine ponds. Droitwich Spa, located in England, is famous for its abundance of saturated brine.
Industrial use of brines
Brines are also used in the pharmaceutical industry. Brines used include those of sodium chloride and potassium chloride.
See also
"Brine"