User blog comment:Xilinoc/Ch. 567 (Rukia be like "I ain't even scared though")/@comment-10554972-20140205203959/@comment-5693502-20140206082436

Rukia said it herself, "Sode no Shirayuki does not produce frost". To clarify that means her zanpakuto does not produce ice. How about instead of me saying she can control temperature, I say she can control 'cold' (i.e. sub-zero temperature); that should clear up any temperature confusion.

Also people seem to forget that water isn't the only thing that can freeze... the only reason ice forms around her blade is because water is present in abundance within their atmosphere.