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Colloidal precipitates

Colloidal precipitates

The high insolubility of some precipitates can result in an unfavorable relative supersaturation. This can lead to colloidal particles with a large surface-to-mass ratio, where adsorption is promoted. For instance, in the precipitation of silver chloride, silver ions are adsorbed on the surface of the colloidal particles, forming a primary layer. This layer attracts ions of opposite charge (such as nitrate ions), forming a diffuse secondary layer of adsorbed ions. This electric double layer...

Crystal Growth: Principles of Crystallization

Crystal Growth: Principles of Crystallization

Crystallization is a phase transformation process in which crystals are precipitated from a supersaturated solution or formed from other sources. During crystallization, atoms or molecules arrange themselves into a well-defined, rigid crystal lattice to minimize energy.
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Recrystallization: Solid–Solution Equilibria

Recrystallization is a purification technique used to separate impurities from solid compounds. In this technique, no chemical reactions occur. Instead, it exploits physical properties only, specifically, the solubility differences between the desired compound and impurities, either at a single temperature or at different temperatures, and under other selected conditions. The solid-solution equilibrium (solubility equilibrium) of each component in the solution represents a binary phase...

Ionic Crystal Structures

Ionic Crystal Structures

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Precipitate Formation and Particle Size Control

Precipitate Formation and Particle Size Control

In precipitation gravimetry, the precipitating agent should react specifically or selectively with the analyte. While a specific reagent reacts with the analyte alone, a selective reagent can react with a limited number of chemical species.
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Size-Exclusion Chromatography

Size-Exclusion Chromatography

In size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), also known as molecular-exclusion or gel-permeation chromatography, molecules are separated based on their sizes. This technique is important for separating large molecules such as polymers and biomolecules. The two classes of micron-sized stationary phases encountered in SEC are silica particles and cross-linked polymer resin beads. Both materials are porous, but their pore sizes vary significantly.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 25, 2025

Harvesting and Cryo-cooling Crystals of Membrane Proteins Grown in Lipidic Mesophases for Structure Determination by Macromolecular Crystallography

Harvesting and Cryo-cooling Crystals of Membrane Proteins Grown in Lipidic Mesophases for Structure Determination by Macromolecular Crystallography

Published on: September 2, 2012

Porous crystals in charged sphere suspensions by aggregate-driven phase separation.

Nina Lorenz¹, Christopher Wittenberg¹, Thomas Palberg¹

¹Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz, Germany. palberg@uni-mainz.de.

|June 27, 2023

Summary

Researchers discovered a new method to create porous colloidal crystals by trapping aggregates within host crystals during rapid solidification. This process yields stable, perforated microstructures with potential applications in advanced materials.

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Harvesting and Cryo-cooling Crystals of Membrane Proteins Grown in Lipidic Mesophases for Structure Determination by Macromolecular Crystallography

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Area of Science:

Colloid and Surface Science
Materials Science
Crystallography

Background:

Phase transition kinetics critically influence material microstructure.
Colloidal crystals with incorporated aggregates present unique structural challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the formation and stabilization of porous crystalline microstructures in colloidal suspensions.
To understand the role of aggregates in phase transitions and microstructure development.

Main Methods:

Optical microscopy was employed to observe the microstructural evolution.
Kinetic characterization using power law analysis.

Main Results:

Observed transformation from a homogeneous crystalline solid to perforated crystallites and an aggregate-enriched fluid.
Identified a rapid solidification stage as crucial for trapping aggregates.
Demonstrated the route's independence from initial microstructure and system composition.
Found the porous structure's thermodynamic stability comparable to slowly grown pure crystals.

Conclusions:

A novel route to porous colloidal crystals via aggregate incorporation during rapid solidification was established.
The resulting porous structures exhibit significant thermodynamic stability.
This method offers a new pathway for designing advanced porous materials.