TY - CONF A1 - Stawski, Tomasz T1 - The structure of amorphous calcium sulfate and its role in the nucleation pathway and final mesostructure of CaSO 4 phases N2 - In recent years, we have come to appreciate the astounding intricacy of the formation process of minerals from ions in aqueous solutions. In this context, a number of studies have already revealed that nucleation in the CaSO4-H2O system is non-classical, where the formation of the different crystalline phases involves several steps including a common amorphous precursor. In this contribution a holistic view of the formation mechanism of gypsum and bassanite from solution will be presented. In short, our in situ and time-resolved scattering data demonstrate that calcium sulfate precipitation starts with the formation and aggregation of well-defined sub-3 nm primary species. These species constitute building “bricks'' of an amorphous precursor phase. We characterised the “bricks” by combining information obtained at different length-scales accessible at the mesoscale (from small-angle scattering) and at the atomic-length-scale (wide-angle scattering and high-energy diffraction). From these scattering data we derived pair distribution functions of the clusters and restricted their external shapes and dimensions. This allowed us to propose a structure of the primary species and to explore their dynamic properties with unbiased MD simulations using polarizable force fields. The formation of the amorphous phase involves the aggregation of these small primary species into larger disordered aggregates exhibiting “brick-in-the-wall” structure. The actual crystallisation occurs by the restructuring and coalescence of the “bricks” into a given calcium sulfate phase depending on the thermodynamic conditions of the solution. Importantly, these rearrangement processes by no means continue until a (nearly-)perfect homogeneous single crystal is obtained. Instead they come to a stop or at least significantly slow down. Such a process thus yields a final imperfect mesocrystal, composed of smaller domains rather than a continuous crystal structure, within which the domains are separated by an amorphous calcium sulfate phase. T2 - Goldschmidt Virtual 2021 CY - Online meeting DA - 04.07.2021 KW - Amorphous calcium sulfate KW - Scattering KW - SAXS/WAXS PY - 2021 UR - https://2021.goldschmidt.info/goldschmidt/2021/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/3847 AN - OPUS4-53621 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Yusenko, Kirill T1 - Single-source precursors strategy to access refractory high-entropy alloys for electrocatalytic applications N2 - High-entropy alloys containing up to 6 platinum group metals can be prepared by thermal decomposition of single-source precursors non requiring high temperature. We prepare the first example of a single-phase hexagonal high-entropy alloy. Heat treat- ment up to 1500 K and compression up to 45 GPa do not result in phase changes, a record temperature and pres- sure stability for a single-phase high-entropy alloy. The alloys show pronounced electrocatalytic activity in methanol oxidation, which opens a route for the use of high-entropy alloys as materials for sustainable energy conversion. T2 - HEA2020: first international virtual workshop on high-entropy alloy and complex solid solution nanoparticles for electrocatalysis CY - Online meeting DA - 06.10.2020 KW - High-entropy alloys KW - Single-source precursors PY - 2020 AN - OPUS4-54013 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Yusenko, Kirill A1 - Smekhova, A. A1 - Kuzmin, A. T1 - Extended X-Ray absorption fine structure (exafs) to study local constitution of high-entropy alloys N2 - Modern design of superior multi-functional alloys composed of several principal components requires in-depth studies of their local structure for developing desired macroscopic properties. Herein, peculiarities of atomic arrangements on the local scale and electronic states of constituent elements in the single-phase face-centered cubic (fcc)- and body-centered cubic (bcc)-structured high-entropy Alx-CrFeCoNi alloys (x = 0.3 and 3, respectively) are explored by element-specific X-ray absorption spectroscopy in hard and soft X-ray energy ranges. Simulations based on the reverse Monte Carlo approach allow to perform a simultaneous fit of extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectra recorded at K absorption edges of each 3d constituent and to reconstruct the local environment within the first coordination shells of absorbers with high precision. T2 - SPP2006: ordering in high-entropy alloys CY - Online meeting DA - 05.10.2021 KW - EXAFS KW - High-entropy alloys PY - 2021 AN - OPUS4-54015 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Stawski, Tomasz T1 - Scattering is a powerful tool to follow nucleation and growth of minerals from solutions N2 - In recent years, we have come to appreciate the astounding intricacy of the formation process of minerals from ions in aqueous solutions. The original ‘textbook’ image o these phenomena, stemming from the adaptation of classical nucleation and growth theories, has increased in complexity due to the discovery of a variety of precursor and intermediate species [e.g. 1], including solute clusters (e.g. prenucleation clusters PNCs), liquid(-like) phases, as well as amorphous and nanocrystalline solids etc. In general, these precursor or intermediate species constitute different, often short-lived points along the pathway from dissolved ions to the final solids (typically crystals in this context). In this regard synchrotron-based scattering (SAXS/WAXS/HEXD appears to be the perfect tool to follow in situ and in a time-resolved manner the crystallization pathways because of the temporal and spatial length scales that can be directly accessed with these techniques. Here, I show how we used scattering to probe the crystallization mechanisms o calcium sulfate. CaSO4 minerals (i.e. gypsum, anhydrite and bassanite) are widespread in natural and industrial environments. During the last several years, a number o studies have revealed indeed that nucleation in the CaSO4-H2O system is non-classical My SAXS data demonstrate that gypsum precipitation, involves formation and aggregation of sub-3 nm primary species. These species constitute building blocks o an amorphous precursor phase [2]. Further, I show how in situ high-energy X-ray diffraction experiments and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations can be combined to derive the atomic structure of the primary CaSO4 clusters seen at small-angles [3]. fitted several plausible structures to the derived pair distribution functions and explored their dynamic properties using unbiased MD simulations based on polarizable force fields. Finally, based on combined SAXS/WAXS, broad-q-range measurements, show that the process of formation of bassanite, a less hydrated form of CaSO4, is very similar to the formation of gypsum: it also involves the aggregation of small primary species into larger disordered aggregates [4]. Based on these recent insights I formulated a tentative general model for calcium sulfate precipitation from solution. This model involves primary species that are formed through the assembly of multiple Ca2+ and SO42- ions into nanoclusters. These nanoclusters assemble into poorly ordered (i.e. amorphous) hydrated aggregates which in turn undergo ordering into coherent crystalline units of either gypsum o bassanite (and possibly anhydrite). Determination of the structure and (meta)stability of the primary species is important from both a fundamental, e.g. establishing a general non-classical nucleation model, and applied perspective; e.g. allow for an improved design of additives for greater control of the nucleation pathway T2 - BAM - Abteilungsseminar 6.3 CY - Online meeting DA - 21.02.2021 KW - Scattering KW - SAXS/WAXS KW - Calcium sulfate PY - 2021 AN - OPUS4-53713 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Cakir, Cafer Tufan T1 - Unrevealing the depths of compositionally complex alloys with grazing exit XANES N2 - High entropy alloys (HEAs) are considered as a new class of alloys containing at least 5 elements with concentrations between 5 and 35 atomic percent. There has been a growing interest in HEAs in the material research field in recent years. Due to their adjustable composition, which enables the modifications of mechanical properties (such as hardness, strength and ductility etc) and their stability at high temperatures, HEAs have been the focus of various studies. Especially the corrosion behavior of HEAs has been a wide research interest. Since the grazing exit X-ray fluorescence (GEXRF) offers a non-destructive way to collect notable information regarding the high temperature oxidation, we consider it as a useful method to investigate how HEAs behave in corrosive environments. The main idea of grazing geometry is to enhance the fluorescence signal of the surface. This enables highly sensitive surface analyses of thin protective film on surface in sub-micrometer scale. Position-sensitive area detectors provide information regarding the signal emitted from the sample as a function of emission angle and thus allow depth-sensitive analysis. Furthermore, the data collected from samples of an incidence energy which lays within a specific energy range provides XANES data to determine oxidation states. Moreover, since GEXRF profiles can also be simulated through physical models (Urbach 1999), they enable us to determine the layer thickness of a given sample in a non-destructive way. In this contribution, we present the preliminary results of a conceptual study regarding layer properties of CrCoNi medium entropy alloy. The successful implementation of such methodological concept will pave the way for the investigation of more complex alloys with multiple layers, which is planned for the later phases of the project. T2 - XAFS 2021, The 18th International XAFS Conference CY - Online meeting DA - 02.08.2021 KW - GEXRF KW - High entropy alloys KW - XANES KW - Grazing exit KW - XAS PY - 2021 AN - OPUS4-54028 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Rautenberg, Max T1 - Ca-MOFs with varying fluorination degree N2 - In current Li-ion batteries electrode materials consist typically of inorganic materials, such as LiCoO2, LiNixCoyMn1-zO2, LiFePO4, Li4Ti5O12. These materials struggle with toxicity or limited mineral resources, making them expensive. Therefore, eco-friendly, sustainable, and low-cost alternatives are researched for in recent years. A series of organic compounds were investigated as electrode materials for alkali-ion batteries. Among them organic carbonyl-based materials show reversible storage of lithium- or sodium-ions. Metal terephthalates stand out with their easy synthesis, moderate operational voltage and enhanced dissolution stability compared to other organic compounds. One degradation pathway consists of the dissolution of the electrode material by HF, formed in a side reaction by water and the fluorous electrolyte. Fluorinated metal terephthalates could offer higher dissolution stability against HF and less contamination by water due to their increased hydrophobicity. The goal of this project is the synthesis and the investigation of the formation mechanism of a series of calcium-based MOFs with increasing fluorine content. For this purpose, we aimed for the construction of calcium-based MOFs with terephthalic acid (H2-pBDC), 2-fluoro-terephthalic acid (H2-2F-pBDC), 2,3,4,5-tetrafluoroterephthalic acid (H2-pBDC-F4), isophthalic acid (H2-mBDC) and 5-fluoro-isophthalic acid (H2-5F-mBDC). T2 - SFB 1349 Wintersymposium 2022 CY - Berlin, Germany DA - 15.03.2022 KW - Mechanochemistry KW - Electrode materials KW - Fluorinated MOFs KW - In situ PXRD PY - 2022 AN - OPUS4-54478 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Mishmastnehi, Moslem A1 - Stawski, Tomasz T1 - Crystals of Gypsum in Hands of Masters N2 - The microstructure of most Seljuk and Ilkhanid stucco decorations consists of micrometer-sized crystals of gypsum. The stucco-masters of these periods (neither nowadays stucco-masters) were not able to directly control the properties of these tiny crystals with their hands or centimeter-sized tools. There are, however, traces of chaîne opératoire accumulated in the materialistic body of these pieces, some of which could be explored through an interdisciplinary approach. Such an investigation requires very careful in situ observation of the macrostructure, and scientific analyses of the material to discover part of the production process for each body of stucco. Furthermore, there are deterioration factors, some of which are not yet fully understood, and should be identified using modern analytical instruments. These damaging factors could easily affect the micro and macro structure of a stucco decoration, influencing our interpretation. The concept of chaîne opératoire reframes our questions about the production process and probable dating technique of Seljuk and Ilkhanid stuccoes, while analyses of labmade replicas and historic materials enhance our understanding and interpretation of these materials. Here we present the results of such a study for a large body of Seljuk and Ilkhanid stucco decorations at various sites in Iran, and present the potential of this approach as a new perspective in this field of research. T2 - Stucco in the Architecture of Iran and Neighbouring Lands CY - Bamberg, Germany DA - 04.05.2022 KW - Gypsum KW - Stuccos KW - Crystallization PY - 2022 AN - OPUS4-54782 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Stawski, Tomasz T1 - Particle-mediated origins of mesocrystalline disorder in calcium sulfate single crystals N2 - Calcium sulfate minerals are abundant in natural and engineered environments and they exist in the form of three hydrates: gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O), bassanite (CaSO4·0.5H2O), and anhydrite (CaSO4). Due to their relevance in natural and industrial processes, the formation pathways of these calcium sulfate phases from aqueous solution have been the subject of intensive research1. The state-of-the-art of the calcium sulfate formation mechanisms builds upon and goes beyond what we have come to appreciate in the astounding intricacy of other mineral formation processes from ions in aqueous solutions. The original, and rather naive, 'textbook' image of these phenomena, stemming from the adaptation of classical nucleation and growth theories, has increased in complexity due to the discovery of a variety of precursor and intermediate species2. These include solute clusters (e.g. prenucleation clusters, PNCs), liquid(-like) phases, as well as amorphous and nanocrystalline solids etc.. In this context, a number of studies have already revealed that nucleation in the CaSO4-H2O system is non-classical, where the formation of the different crystalline phases involves several steps including a common amorphous precursor1, 3, 4. In this contribution we show that the formation of the amorphous phase involves the aggregation of small primary particles into larger disordered aggregates exhibiting a "brick-in-the-wall" structure5, 6. The actual crystallization occurs by the restructuring and coalescence of the particles ("bricks") into a given calcium sulfate phase depending on the physicochemical conditions of the solution. Importantly, the rearrangement process does not continue until a (nearly-)perfect homogeneous single crystal is obtained. Instead it comes to a stop, or at least significantly slows down. Such a process thus yields a final imperfect mesocrystal, composed of smaller domains rather than a continuous crystal structure, within which the domains are separated by an amorphous (i.e. less ordered) calcium sulfate phase. Hence, the non-classical crystallization process of CaSO4 yields a final imperfect mesocrystal with an overall morphology resembling that of a single crystal, yet composed of smaller nano-domains. Importantly, these observations reveal that organic-free calcium sulfate mesocrystals grown by a particle mediated-pathway preserve in the final crystal structure a “memory” or “imprint” of their non-classical nucleation process, something that has been overlooked until now. Furthermore, the nano-scale misalignment of the structural sub-units within these crystals can propagate through the length-scales, and be expressed macroscopically as misaligned zones/domains in large single crystals (Fig. 1). Indeed, by considering large anhydrite crystals from the famous Naica Mine (“Cueva de los cristales”) we observed a suite of correlated self-similar void defects spanning multiple length-scales7 (Fig 2). These flaws, in the macroscopic crystal, stem from “seeds of imperfection” originating from a particle-mediated nucleation pathway. Hence, building a crystal could be viewed as Nature stacking blocks in a game of Tetris, whilst slowly forgetting the games core concept and failing to fill rows completely. T2 - Granada Münster Discussion Meeting (GMDM) CY - Granda, Spain DA - 30.11.2022 KW - Anhydrite KW - Mesocrystals KW - Calcium sulfate KW - Bassanite KW - Gypsum PY - 2022 AN - OPUS4-56476 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Stawski, Tomasz T1 - Particle-mediated origins of mesocrystalline disorder in calcium sulfate single crystals N2 - Calcium sulfate minerals are abundant in natural and engineered environments and they exist in the form of three hydrates: gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O), bassanite (CaSO4·0.5H2O), and anhydrite (CaSO4). Due to their relevance in natural and industrial processes, the formation pathways of these calcium sulfate phases from aqueous solution have been the subject of intensive research1. The state-of-the-art of the calcium sulfate formation mechanisms builds upon and goes beyond what we have come to appreciate in the astounding intricacy of other mineral formation processes from ions in aqueous solutions. The original, and rather naive, 'textbook' image of these phenomena, stemming from the adaptation of classical nucleation and growth theories, has increased in complexity due to the discovery of a variety of precursor and intermediate species2. These include solute clusters (e.g. prenucleation clusters, PNCs), liquid(-like) phases, as well as amorphous and nanocrystalline solids etc.. In this context, a number of studies have already revealed that nucleation in the CaSO4-H2O system is non-classical, where the formation of the different crystalline phases involves several steps including a common amorphous precursor1, 3, 4. In this contribution we show that the formation of the amorphous phase involves the aggregation of small primary particles into larger disordered aggregates exhibiting a "brick-in-the-wall" structure5, 6. The actual crystallization occurs by the restructuring and coalescence of the particles ("bricks") into a given calcium sulfate phase depending on the physicochemical conditions of the solution. Importantly, the rearrangement process does not continue until a (nearly-)perfect homogeneous single crystal is obtained. Instead it comes to a stop, or at least significantly slows down. Such a process thus yields a final imperfect mesocrystal, composed of smaller domains rather than a continuous crystal structure, within which the domains are separated by an amorphous (i.e. less ordered) calcium sulfate phase. Hence, the non-classical crystallization process of CaSO4 yields a final imperfect mesocrystal with an overall morphology resembling that of a single crystal, yet composed of smaller nano-domains. Importantly, these observations reveal that organic-free calcium sulfate mesocrystals grown by a particle mediated-pathway preserve in the final crystal structure a “memory” or “imprint” of their non-classical nucleation process, something that has been overlooked until now. Furthermore, the nano-scale misalignment of the structural sub-units within these crystals can propagate through the length-scales, and be expressed macroscopically as misaligned zones/domains in large single crystals. Indeed, by considering large anhydrite crystals from the famous Naica Mine (“Cueva de los cristales”) we observed a suite of correlated self-similar void defects spanning multiple length-scales7. These flaws, in the macroscopic crystal, stem from “seeds of imperfection” originating from a particle-mediated nucleation pathway. Hence, building a crystal could be viewed as Nature stacking blocks in a game of Tetris, whilst slowly forgetting the games core concept and failing to fill rows completely. T2 - ECCG: European Conference on Crystal Growth 7 CY - Paris, France DA - 25.07.2022 KW - Anhydrite KW - SAXS KW - Single crystal KW - Mesocrystal PY - 2022 AN - OPUS4-56276 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - CONF A1 - Stawski, Tomasz T1 - Particle-mediated origins of mesocrystallinity in calcium sulfate single crystals N2 - Calcium sulfate minerals are abundant in natural and engineered environments in the form of three phases: gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O), bassanite (CaSO4·0.5H2O), and anhydrite (CaSO4). Due to their relevance in natural and industrial processes, the formation pathways of these phases from aqueous solution have been the subject of intensive research, a number of studies have already revealed that nucleation in the CaSO4-H2O system is non-classical, The formation of the different crystalline phases involves several steps including a common amorphous precursor. In this contribution we show that the formation of the amorphous phase involves the aggregation of small primary particles into larger disordered aggregates exhibiting a "brick-in-the-wall" structure. The actual crystallization occurs by the restructuring and coalescence of the "bricks" into a given calcium sulfate phase depending on the physicochemical conditions of the solution. Such a process yields a final imperfect mesocrystal, composed of smaller domains rather than a continuous single crystal structure. These observations reveal that organic-free calcium sulfate mesocrystals grown by a particle mediated-pathway might preserve in the final crystal structure an “imprint” of their growth pathways. Indeed, by considering large anhydrite crystals from the famous Naica Mine we observed a suite of correlated self-similar void defects spanning multiple length-scales. These flaws, in the macroscopic crystal, stem from “seeds of imperfection” originating from an original particle-mediated growth. Hence, building a crystal could be viewed as Nature stacking blocks in a game of Tetris, whilst slowly forgetting the games core concept and failing to fill rows completely. T2 - GeoMinKöln 2022 CY - Cologne, Germany DA - 11.09.2022 KW - Anhydrite KW - Mesocrystals KW - Calcium sulfate PY - 2022 AN - OPUS4-56277 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -