Fast pyrolysis of rice husk was performed in a spout-fluid bed to produce water-soluble organics. The effects of mineral bed materials (red brick, calcite, limestone, and dolomite) on yield and quality of organics were evaluated with the help of principal component analysis (PCA). Compared to quartz sand, red brick, limestone, and dolomite increased the yield of the water-soluble organics by 6-...

A new type of composite 3D biomaterial that provides extracellular cues that govern the differentiation processes of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) has been developed. In the present study, we evaluated the chondrogenecity of a biohybrid composed of a calcium carbonate scaffold in its calcite polymorph and hyaluronic acid (HA). The source of the calcite scaffolding is an exoskeleton of a sea bar...

Hierarchical composite materials design in biological exoskeletons achieves penetration resistance through a variety of energy-dissipating mechanisms while simultaneously balancing the need for damage localization to avoid compromising the mechanical integrity of the entire structure and to maintain multi-hit capability. Here, we show that the shell of the bivalve Placuna placenta (~99 wt% calc...

Textures of calcite crystals from a variety of mineralized tissues belonging to organisms from four phyla were examined with high-resolution synchrotron x-ray radiation. Significant differences in coherence length and angular spread were observed between taxonomic groups. Crystals from polycrystalline skeletal ensembles were more perfect than those that function as single-crystal elements. Diff...

The temperatures induced in crystalline calcite upon planar shock compression (95 160 GPa) are reported from two-stage light gas-gun exp.eriments. The temperatures are obtained fitting 6-channel optical pyrometer radiances in the 450 to 900 nm range, to a Planck radiation law temperature varied from 3300 to 5400 K. Calculations demonstrate that the temperatures are some 400 to 1350 K lower than...

The oriented attachment of calcite, which is a main component of biominerals, was experimentally demonstrated in an aqueous system at ambient temperatures. Calcite nanoblocks 50 nm in size were prepared by carbonation of Ca(OH)2. One-dimensional (1D) alignment of the calcite nanoblocks was induced at ambient temperatures under a basic condition (pH 12), and single-crystalline rods over 1 mmwere...

Species of Haliotis (abalone) show high variety in structure and mineralogy of the shell. One of the European species (Haliotis tuberculata) in particular has an unusual shell structure in which calcite and aragonite coexist at a microscale with small patches of aragonite embedded in larger calcitic zones. A detailed examination of the boundary between calcite and aragonite using analytical mic...

This study aims at elucidating the mechanisms regulating the interaction of Eu and Ni with calcite (CaCO3). Calcite powders or single crystals (some mm sized) were put into contact with Eu or Ni solutions at concentrations ranging from 10 to 10 mol.L for Eu and 10 mol.L for Ni. The sorption durations ranged from one week to one month. Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS) well adapted to...

Crystallization of calcite from differently concentrated calcium chloride solutions by the CO2 gas diffusion technique in the presence of polystyrene sulfonate yields crystal superstructures with unusual morphology. From the typical calcite rhombohedra as a starting situation, the morphology can be systematically varied via rounded edges and truncated triangles to finally concavely bended lens-...

Aqueous carbonation of Ca(OH)2 is a complex process that produces calcite with scalenohedral calcite phases and characterized by inadequate carbonate species for effective carbonation due to the poor dissolution of CO2 in water. Consequently, we report a solid-liquid-gas carbonation system with an ionic liquid (IL), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide, in view of enhancing the reaction of CO2 w...