Precipitation pathways for ferrihydrite formation in acidic solutions

Iron oxides and oxyhydroxides form via Fe hydrolysis and polymerization in many aqueous environments, but the pathway from Fe monomers to oligomers and then to solid phase nuclei is unknown. In this work, using combined X-ray, UV-vis, and Mössbauer spectroscopic approaches, we were able to identify and quantify the long-time sought ferric speciation over time during ferric oxyhydroxide formation in partially-neutralized ferric nitrate solutions ([Fe ]=0.2M, 1.

Analysis and Simulation of the Structure of Nanoparticles That Undergo a Surface-Driven Structural Transformation

This report addresses the analysis and simulation of the structure of nanoparticles that undergo a surface-driven structural transformation

Special phase transformation and crystal growth pathways observed in nanoparticles†

Phase transformation and crystal growth in nanoparticles may happen via mechanisms distinct from those in bulk materials. We combine experimental studies of as-synthesized and hydrothermally coarsened titania (TiO(2)) and zinc sulfide (ZnS) with thermodynamic analysis, kinetic modeling and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The samples were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, synchrotron X-ray absorption and scattering, and UV-vis spectroscopy. At low temperatures, phase transformation in titania nanoparticles occurs predominantly via interface nucleation at particle–particle contacts. Coarsening and crystal growth of titania nanoparticles can be described using the Smoluchowski equation. Oriented attachment-based crystal growth was common in both hydrothermal solutions and under dry conditions. MD simulations predict large structural perturbations within very fine particles, and are consistent with experimental results showing that ligand binding and change in aggregation state can cause phase transformation without particle coarsening. Such phenomena affect surface reactivity, thus may have important roles in geochemical cycling