Discovery of highly porous material

    Scientists from the University of Uppsala (Sweden) have discovered a new substance - one of the forms of magnesium carbonate, which has huge porosity - 800m 2 / g. The entire volume of upsalite (the so-called obtained substance) is filled with tiny empty pores of about 6 nm 3 . This substance is easy and cheap [how much compared to its analogues?] Can it be used to eliminate the effects of toxic chemicals, chemicals and oil spills.


    What was before


    In nature, magnesium carbonate MgCO 3 has a crystalline structure and contains a huge amount of water. Obtaining a pure substance involves a huge expenditure of energy.
    Silica gel, zeolites, organometallic materials and carbon nanotubes are currently used for adsorption purposes.

    Discovery story


    During the [what?] Experiment, Johan Gomez de la Torre and his colleagues left some of the material in the reaction chamber for the weekend. On Monday, they discovered the appearance of a solid gel, which they were extremely interested in their properties. Obtaining highly porous material was not their goal, so we can talk about the proportion of randomness in the discovery [and what was?]. To repeat the experiment, the scientists took another year.

    In a microscope, upsalite looks like this:
    a) 1 nm b) 200 nm c) 50 nm. In figure “c”, a contrast in pore sizes (pores of different sizes) is noticeable.
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    Research results


    Spectroscopy


    Obtaining anhydrous magnesium carbonate is possible under several conditions. A particularly important parameter is temperature.
    The upper graph shows X-ray diffraction analysis. The average graphs show the characteristics of spectroscopy: the ability of the studied molecules in inelastic (Raman or Raman) scattering of monochromatic light; infrared Fourier spectroscopy. The lower graphs show the analysis of input substances in the X-ray and photoelectron spectra.

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    physical characteristics

    The graphs show the dependences of 1) adsorbability (i.e., absorption) on pressure, 2) porosity on pore volume 3) adsorbability on relative humidity
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    Result table

    The table shows the main absorption characteristics of nitrogen gas N 2 and water H 2 O
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    Substance synthesis


    The synthesis of the substance is shown in the figure below.
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    Formulas of receipt:
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    Conclusion


    Perhaps upsalit will really find application in industry. Ease and cheapness will play a positive role.
    If you have any news on the issues indicated in square brackets, please write in the comments.
    Clarifications are also welcome.

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