A new synthesis approach has been developed to control the morphology of Mn- and Ni-containing carbonate precursors. Through a controlled release of the precipitate, the carbonate precursors form in a "non-classical crystallization" process similar to the natural crystallization of CaCO3, resulting in shapes tunable from microcubes to microspheres. The oriented attachment in the mesocrystal pre...

The carbonate sedimentary record contains diverse compositions and textures that reflect the evolution of oceans and atmospheres through geological time. Efforts to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions from these deposits continue to be hindered by the need for process-based models that can explain observed shifts in carbonate chemistry and form. Traditional interpretations assume minerals...

Neutron diffraction with isotopic substitution has been used to investigate the liquid structures of propylene carbonate and glycerol carbonate. C-HO[double bond, length as m-dash]C hydrogen-bonding motifs dominate the local structure of propylene carbonate, giving rise to the formation of head-to-tail correlated chains of molecules. In contrast, glycerol carbonate exhibits a more disordered st...

Acid proteins capable of nucleating Ca2+ and displaying aggregation capacity play key 13 roles in the formation of calcium carbonate biominerals. EF-hands are among the largest 14 Ca2+-binding motif in proteins. Gad m 1, an Atlantic cod β-parvalbumin isoform, is a monomeric 15 EF-hand protein that acts as a Ca2+ buffer in fish muscle and is able to form amyloids under acidic 16 conditions. Sinc...

The reaction of glycerol with urea to form glycerol carbonate is mostly reported in the patent literature and to date there have been very few fundamental studies of the reaction mechanism. Furthermore, most previous studies have involved homogeneous catalysts whereas the identification of heterogeneous catalysts for this reaction would be highly beneficial. This is a very attractive reaction t...

Scleractinian coral skeletons are made mainly of calcium carbonate in the form of aragonite. The mineral deposition occurs in a biological confined environment, but it is still a theme of discussion to what extent the calcification occurs under biological or environmental control. Hence, the shape, size and organization of skeletal crystals from the cellular level through the colony architectur...

Introduction: The recent discovery of carbonaterich outcrops in the Nili Fossae region of Mars using data returned by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) instrument [1] as well as indications of 2-3% carbonate in alkaline soils at the Phoenix landing site [2] have brought into question the hypothesis that much of martian history has been dominated by an acidic weath...

The development of advanced laboratory-based imaging hyperspectral sensors, such as SisuCHEMA, has created an opportunity to extract compositional information of mineral mixtures from spectral images. Determining proportions of minerals on rock surfaces based on spectral signature is a challenging approach due to naturally-occurring minerals that exist in the form of intimate mixtures, and grai...

the qom formation, which hosts the mazraeh celestite deposit, contains dominantly limestones, marl and subordinate evaporites deposited in shallow marine environments. petrographic evidence indicates that the celestite deposits were formed by replacement of limestone. the presence of carbonate inclusions within celestite crystals as well as the pseudomorphic habits of some crystals suggests tha...