Study of Molecular Behavior in a Water Nanocluster: Size and Temperature Effect

Temperature and size effects on the behavior of nanoscale water molecule clusters are investigated by molecular dynamics simulations. The flexible three-centered (F3C) water potential is used to model the inter- and intramolecular interactions of the water molecule. The differences between the structural properties for the surface region and those for the interior region of the cluster are also investigated. It is found that as the temperature rises, the average number of hydrogen bonds per water molecule decreases, but the ratio of surface water molecules increases. After comparing the water densities in interior regions and the average number of hydrogen bonds in those regions, we find there is no apparent size effect on water molecules in the interior region, whereas the size of the water cluster has a significant influence on the behavior of water molecules at the surface region.