Polymer-Induced Liquid-Precursor (PILP) Process in the Non-Calcium Based Systems of Barium and Strontium Carbonate

Barium and strontium carbonate with various nonequilibrium morphologies were grown in the presence of poly(acrylic acid) sodium salt to induce the polymer-induced liquid-precursor (PILP) process. Previously, the PILP process had only been demonstrated for calcium carbonate but with indirect evidence suggesting it call be induced in calcium phosphate and barium carbonate. In this report, further evidence to suggest a similar liquid-phase amorphous precursor can be generated for both barium and strontium carbonate is presented, and these phases were used to synthesize various unique morphologies in the transformed crystals, including films, fibers, and cones. On the basis of the nanogranular texture of the fibers, a new mechanism for fiber formation is proposed, which combines a permutation of our former solution-precursor-solid (SPS) mechanism with mesocrystal assembly. This hypothesis includes an autocatalytic assembly of nanodroplets/nanoparticles at high energy Surface protrusions as it means for generating the one-dimensional growth of fibers. These findings support the premise that the PILP process is nonspecific and applicable to many different ionic salt crystal systems.