Growth of single crystals in structured templates

Yue, Wenbo; Kulak, Alex N.; Meldrum, Fiona C.

doi:10.1039/b513802g

Cited by 45 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 26 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Polymer membranes with sponge-like structures, formed as replicas of sea urchin skeletal plates were used to mould the three-dimensional form of a range of crystals. [48][49][50] Either single crystals or polycrystalline particles with complex, macroporous structures identical to the original polymer membrane were generated according to the solution concentrations applied and the polymer surface chemistry. Providing a more flexible system, colloidal monolayers of silica or polymer particles were used to template the nucleation face of crystals, demonstrating that such moulding of crystal morphologies could be achieved on the nanometer length scale.…”

Section: Template-directed Control Of Crystal Morphologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[48][49][50]53] The generality of this methodology was then investigated by growing a wide range of single crystals including strontium sulphate, lead sulphate and copper sulphate within the same template. [48] Finally, the role of the template surface chemistry in producing single crystals was studied through systematic variation of the surface chemistry of the polymer membrane. [53] Clearly, growth of a single crystal requires control over the number of nucleation sites, such that a single crystal rather than a polycrystalline particle develops.…”

Section: Macroporous Single Crystalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Template‐Directed Control of Crystal Morphologies

Meldrum

Ludwigs

2007

Macromolecular Bioscience

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Biominerals are characterised by unique morphologies, and it is a long-term synthetic goal to reproduce these synthetically. We here apply a range of templating routes to investigate whether a fascinating category of biominerals, the single crystals with complex forms, can be produced using simple synthetic methods. Macroporous crystals with sponge-like morphologies identical to that of sea urchin skeletal plates were produced on templating with a sponge-like polymer membrane. Similarly, patterning of individual crystal faces was achieved from the micrometer to nanometer scale through crystallisation on colloidal particle monolayers and patterned polymer thin films. These experiments demonstrate the versatility of a templating approach to producing single crystals with unique morphologies.

show abstract

Section: Template-directed Control Of Crystal Morphologiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Macroporous Single Crystalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Template‐Directed Control of Crystal Morphologies

Meldrum

Ludwigs

2007

Macromolecular Bioscience

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…4,56 A perfect example of a process which occurs in confinement is biomineralization. 7,8 Despite this, with the exception of control over morphology, [9][10][11][12] the effects of confinement on the formation of biominerals, or indeed inorganic substances has received little attention, possibly partly due to the experimental challenges associated with carrying out systematic studies of the precipitation of poorly soluble compounds in small volumes. Recent work has provided strong evidence, however, that confinement can also have significant effects on the precipitation of compounds such as calcium carbonate 13 and calcium sulfate, sometimes at surprisingly large length scales.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Confinement Increases the Lifetimes of Hydroxyapatite Precursors

2014

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The mineral component of bone is a carbonated, non-stoichiometric hydroxyapatite (calcium phosphate) that forms in nanometer confinement within collagen fibrils, the principal organic constituent of bone. We here employ a model system to study the effect of confinement on hydroxyapatite precipitation from solution under physiological conditions. In common with earlier studies of calcium carbonate and calcium sulfate precipitation, we find that confinement significantly prolongs the lifetime of metastable phases, here amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP) and octacalcium phosphate (OCP). The effect occurs at surprisingly large separations of up to 1 m, and at 0.2 m the lifetime of ACP is extended by at least an order of magnitude. The soluble additive poly(aspartic acid), which in bulk stabilizes ACP, appears to act synergistically with confinement to give a greatly enhanced stability of ACP. The reason for the extended lifetime appears to be different from that found with CaCO 3 and CaSO 4 , and underscores both the variety of mechanisms whereby 2 confinement affects the growth and transformation of solid phases, and the necessity to study a wide range of crystalline systems to build a full understanding of confinement effects. We suggest that in the case of ACP and OCP the extended lifetime of these metastable phases is chiefly due to a slower transport of ions between a dissolving metastable phase, and the more stable, growing phase. These results highlight the potential importance of confinement on biomineralisation processes.3

show abstract

“…18,20,21 Looking then at biologically-relevant solids such as calcium carbonate and calcium sulfate, confined volumes can provide environments that can control the formation of single crystals with complex morphologies. 7,[22][23][24] Using systems including a crossedcylinders apparatus, 19,25,26 arrays of picolitre droplets, 27 vesicles that offer confinement in the general range 50 nm -50 m, [28][29][30] and the pores of track-etched membranes, [31][32][33] it has also been demonstrated that the lifetimes of amorphous precursor phases and metastable crystalline polymorphs of calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, calcium sulfate and calcium oxalate can be significantly extended, even in micron-scale environments. While this length scale is relevant to many biomineralization processes, crystallization in the environment (eg.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Nanoscale Confinement on the Crystallization of Potassium Ferrocyanide

Anduix‐Canto

Kim

Wang

et al. 2016

Crystal Growth & Design

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Many crystallization processes of great significance in nature and technology occur in small volumes rather than in bulk solution. This article describes an investigation into the effects of nanoscale confinement on the crystallization of the inorganic compound potassium ferrocyanide, K4Fe(CN)6 (KFC). Selected for study due to its high solubility, rich polymorphism and interesting physical properties, K4Fe(CN)6 was precipitated within controlled pore glasses (CPG) with pore diameters of 8, 48 and 362 nm. Remarkable effects were seen, such that although anhydrous potassium ferrocyanide was never observed on precipitation in bulk aqueous solution, it was the first phase to crystallize within the CPGs and was present for at least 1 day in all three pore sizes. Slow transformation to the metastable tetragonal polymorph of the trihydrate K4Fe(CN)6•3H2O (KFCT) then occurred, where this polymorph was stable for a month in 8 nm pores. Finally, conversion to the thermodynamically stable monoclinic polymorph of KFCT was observed, where this phase always found after a few minutes in bulk solution. As far as we are aware these retardation effects -by up to five orders of magnitude in the 8 nm pores -are far greater than any seen previously in inorganic systems, and provide strong evidence for the universal effects of confinement on crystallization.

show abstract

Growth of single crystals in structured templates

Cited by 45 publications

References 26 publications

Template‐Directed Control of Crystal Morphologies

Template‐Directed Control of Crystal Morphologies

Confinement Increases the Lifetimes of Hydroxyapatite Precursors

Effect of Nanoscale Confinement on the Crystallization of Potassium Ferrocyanide

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About