Geology

Organic chemistry

Mineralogy

Chemistry

Metallurgy

Materials science

Hemihydrate

Calcium carbonate

Carbonate

Gypsum

Phase (matter)

Calcium

Science

Hydrous CaCO 3 gets a new structure Calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ) forms important minerals on Earth and is a model system for understanding crystal nucleation. Three different structures of CaCO 3 are known, along with two structures that are hydrated. Zou et al. found a third hydrated CaCO 3 structure formed from amorphous CaCO 3 in the presence of magnesium ions. The discovery illustrates the importance of amorphous precursors for producing new materials. Science , this issue p. 396

A hydrated crystalline calcium carbonate phase: Calcium carbonate hemihydrate