Mineral dissolution by dimeric complexes
Abstract
Mineral dissolution is typically thought to occur by the detachment of monomeric building blocks of the crystal structure, although direct evidence is rare. Using in situ high-speed atomic force microscopy to examine step-edge retreat dynamics at high resolution, we report that the dissolution of gibbsite in alkaline solutions occurs mainly by the release of aluminate dimers, which subsequently dissociate into the monomeric species that dominate the solution. The observed dissolution anisotropy is readily explained by this mechanism, which was further supported by density functional tight-binding simulations of detachment activation energies. Recognition that such polynuclear dissolution mechanisms exist may enable an improved understanding of processes regulating mineral dissolution rates in nature and industry.
Article Details
Journal Info
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
National Academy of Sciences
Authors (18)
Xiaoxu Li
Qing Guo
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Henan Institute of Advanced Technology
Yatong Zhao
Physical & Computational Science Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Chang Qian
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Materials Research Laboratory, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign
Maxime Pouvreau
Physical & Computational Science Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Trent R. Graham
Ping Chen
LiLi Liu
Tianjin Key Laboratory for Photoelectric Materials and Devices, School of Materials Science and Engineering
Chang Liu
Benjamin A. Legg
Physical & Computational Science Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Qian Chen
Aijun Miao
State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University
Zheming Wang
Physical & Computational Science Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
James J. De Yoreo
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Carolyn I. Pearce
Energy and Environment Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Aurora E. Clark
Physical & Computational Science Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Kevin M. Rosso
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA.
Xin Zhang