Ionization
Baring in mind I’m no scientist (got a U in my Chemistry O’s, then went on to get a job as a chemist – of sorts… go figure)… Ions do not need to be harder than steel to rip it appart. Throw a lump of Blu Tack at a wall and you get a squidged lump. But give it enough velocity and it’ll punch a hole right through. As ADM said (and he sounded more like a scientist to me), it’s all down to the amount of energy the object has.
One thing that has always puzzled me though. Water is jam packed full of impurities. Distil it and the impurities get left behind. Makes perfect sense to me. But you, apparantly, get the same result if you de-ionize it (or is it ionize it? No I think it’s de-). HOW??? It’s still the same water in the same bottle. So where has all the crap gone? How did it get out? Or is it just some crazy scam to get you to buy bottles of the same stuff that comes out the tap in the vague hope that this will help stop your iron from getting knackered quick?