Issue 41, 2015

{100} → {111} morphological change in KCl crystals grown from Pb2+-doped aqueous solutions

Abstract

KCl f.c.c. crystals generally exhibit a {100} habit when growing from pure aqueous solutions, a richer {100} + {111} morphology being obtained only under well-defined growth temperature and supersaturation. When increasing amounts (less than 2000 ppm) of Pb are put in a supersaturated solution, the KCl growth morphology undergoes a progressive change: {100} → {100} + {111} → {111}. Detailed growth patterns have been investigated by means of SEM and AFM, while EDS and XRF analyses allowed us to ascertain that Pb is not only adsorbed on the growing KCl surfaces but also selectively absorbed within the {111} growth sectors. Starting from recent and analogous findings, we tried to interpret the morphological change by means of a geometric and structural model of epitaxy between the {100} and the {111} forms of KCl and the most important forms of those compounds that could be adsorbed on them: PbCl2 (cotunnite), PbCl(OH) (laurionite–paralaurionite) and KCl·PbCl2 (challacolloite). Excellent lattice coincidences have been found, thus proving that the {111} KCl octahedron is largely privileged for adsorption/absorption to occur with respect to the {100} KCl cube. Based on this ground, simple kinetic considerations can be proposed to satisfactorily explain the observed morphology change.

Graphical abstract: {100} → {111} morphological change in KCl crystals grown from Pb2+-doped aqueous solutions

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
20 Jul 2015
Accepted
04 Sep 2015
First published
04 Sep 2015

CrystEngComm, 2015,17, 7844-7855

Author version available

{100} → {111} morphological change in KCl crystals grown from Pb2+-doped aqueous solutions

L. Pastero, R. Cossio and D. Aquilano, CrystEngComm, 2015, 17, 7844 DOI: 10.1039/C5CE01425E

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