Issue 11, 2015

Liquid-crystalline calcium carbonate: biomimetic synthesis and alignment of nanorod calcite

Abstract

Liquid-crystalline CaCO3 has been prepared for the first time. The nanorods of CaCO3 calcite are obtained by bio-inspired crystallization through aqueous colloidal precursors of amorphous CaCO3 stabilized by poly(acrylic acid). The synthesized calcite nanocrystals have well-tuned morphologies that are preferable for formation of liquid-crystalline phases in concentrated aqueous colloidal solution. The one-dimensional alignment of calcite crystals is achieved by mechanical shearing of the aqueous colloidal solution showing liquid-crystalline phases. These CaCO3-based liquid crystals formed by a self-organization process in mild conditions may have great potential for use as environmentally friendly materials.

Graphical abstract: Liquid-crystalline calcium carbonate: biomimetic synthesis and alignment of nanorod calcite

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
20 May 2015
Accepted
11 Aug 2015
First published
12 Aug 2015
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2015,6, 6230-6234

Liquid-crystalline calcium carbonate: biomimetic synthesis and alignment of nanorod calcite

M. Nakayama, S. Kajiyama, T. Nishimura and T. Kato, Chem. Sci., 2015, 6, 6230 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC01820J

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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