Formation and growth of lithium phosphate chemical gardens. Issue 8 (14th February 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Emmanuel, Michael; Lantos, Emese; Horváth, Dezső; Tóth, Ágota
• Is Part Of: Soft matter. Volume 18:Issue 8(2022)
• Page Start: 1731
• Page End: 1736
• Publication Date: 2022-02-14
• Subjects: Soft condensed matter -- Periodicals; 530.413
• DOI: 10.1039/d1sm01808f
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1744-683X

Abstract

Abstract : Lithium phosphate tubular structures grow in two stages around a liquid jet despite their linearly increasing volume. Abstract : We show that a chemical garden can be developed from an alkaline metal precipitate using a flow-driven setup. By injecting sodium phosphate solution into lithium chloride solution from below, a liquid jet appears, on which a precipitate grows forming a structure resembling a hydrothermal vent. The precipitate column continuously builds upward until a maximum height is reached. The vertical growth then significantly slows down while the tube diameter still increases. The analysis of the growth profiles has revealed a linear dependence of volume growth rate on the injection rate, hence yielding a universal growth profile. The expansion in diameter, localized at the tip of the structure, scales with a power law suggesting that the phenomenon is controlled by both diffusion and convection.