Search results for "calcium carbonate"
showing 10 items of 175 documents
Clear signature of the (2 x 1) reconstruction of calcite (1014).
2010
Calcite is a mineral of fundamental importance that plays a crucial role in many fields of research such as biomineralization, biomolecule adsorption, and reactivity as well as industrial and daily life applications. Consequently, the most stable cleavage plane of calcite has been studied extensively using both direct imaging techniques such as atomic force microscopy as well as spectroscopic and diffraction techniques. Several surface structures have been reported for the (10 (1) over bar4) cleavage plane of calcite differing from the simple bulk-truncated structure and an ongoing controversy exists in literature whether the cleavage plane exhibits a (2 x 1) reconstruction or not. We study…
Textural features and isotope geochemistry of the Scillato travertine (north-central Sicily): genetic implications.
2015
The travertine deposit, outcropping near the Scillato town (north-central Sicily), was originated by precipitation of calcium carbonate from the Scillato springs, documented as bicarbonate-enriched waters due to dissolution of the Madonie mountains carbonate rocks. This deposit is today well represented by the Travertine Cave, essentially constituted by stalactites and stalagmites in which travertine typically appears laminated with alternation of light and dark laminae. Mineralogical analysis have revealed the almost exclusive presence of calcite and observation under the polarized-light microscope showed different textural features, like presence of debris and porous portions, micritic po…
Rheological and Mechanical Behavior of LDPE/Calcium Carbonate Nanocomposites and Microcomposites
2012
The increase of the interest in polymer nanocomposites has been leading to continuous growing search toward nanofillers alternative to the widely known clay-based ones. One of these possible alternatives is represented by calcium carbonate nanoparticles, which have not been widely investigated in such context. In this article, a study on the rheological and morphological behavior of dif- ferent low density polyethylene-calcium carbonate nanocomposites, compared with a reference calcium carbonate microcomposite, is presented. Several different nanosized calcium carbonates at different amounts were used. The results from the rheological and me- chanical tests outlined that only minor changes …
The Understanding of the Metazoan Skeletal System, Based on the Initial Discoveries with Siliceous and Calcareous Sponges
2017
Initiated by studies on the mechanism of formation of the skeletons of the evolutionary oldest still extant multicellular animals, the sponges (phylum Porifera) have provided new insights into the mechanism of formation of the Ca-phosphate/hydroxyapatite skeleton of vertebrate bone. Studies on the formation of the biomineral skeleton of sponges revealed that both the formation of the inorganic siliceous skeletons (sponges of the class of Hexactinellida and Demospongiae) and of the calcareous skeletons (class of Calcarea) is mediated by enzymes (silicatein: polymerization of biosilica; and carbonic anhydrase: deposition of Ca-carbonate). Detailed studies of the initial mineralization steps i…
Amplified morphogenetic and bone forming activity of amorphous versus crystalline calcium phosphate/polyphosphate.
2020
Amorphous Ca-phosphate (ACP) particles stabilized by inorganic polyphosphate (polyP) were prepared by co-precipitation of calcium and phosphate in the presence of polyP (15% [w/w]). These hybrid nanoparticles showed no signs of crystallinity according to X-ray diffraction analysis, in contrast to the particles obtained at a lower (5% [w/w]) polyP concentration or to hydroxyapatite. The ACP/15% polyP particles proved to be a suitable matrix for cell growth and attachment and showed pronounced osteoblastic and vasculogenic activity in vitro. They strongly stimulated mineralization of the human osteosarcoma cell line SaOS-2, as well as cell migration/microvascularization, as demonstrated in th…
Phosphorus recovery by struvite crystallization in WWTPs: Influence of the sludge treatment line operation
2010
Phosphorus recovery by struvite (MgNH(4)PO(4).6H(2)O) crystallization is one of the most widely recommended technologies for treating sludge digester liquors especially in wastewater treatments plants (WWTP) with enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR). In this paper, phosphorus recovery by struvite crystallization is assessed using the rejected liquors resulting from four different operational strategies of the sludge treatment line. Phosphorus precipitation and recovery efficiencies of between 80-90% and 70-85%, respectively, were achieved in the four experiments. The precipitates formed were mainly struvite, followed by amorphous calcium phosphate and, in some experiments, by calci…
Isotopic composition of cattle pancreatic stones: biological and geochemical implications.
1977
Latitudinal variations of the O18/O16-ratios of carbonate and phosphate of cattle pancreatic stones parallel a similar pattern of oxygen isotope values in rain water. C13/C12-ratios were virtually identical for the 7 cases studied. Isotopic measurements of mammalian hard tissues may be used for studying short-term climatic variations through Quaternary.
Amorphous polyphosphate/amorphous calcium carbonate implant material with enhanced bone healing efficacy in a critical-size defect in rats
2016
In this study the effect of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) microparticles and amorphous calcium polyphosphate (polyP) microparticles (termed aCa-polyP-MP) on bone mineral forming cells/tissue was investigated in vitro and in vivo. The ACC particles (termed ACC-P10-MP) were prepared in the presence of Na-polyP. Only the combinations of polyP and ACC microparticles enhanced the proliferation rate of human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Gene expression studies revealed that ACC causes an upregulation of the expression of the cell membrane-associated carbonic anhydrase IX (CA IX; formation of ACC), while the transcript level of the alkaline phosphatase (ALP; liberation of orthophosphate from…
Nonenzymatic Transformation of Amorphous CaCO3 into Calcium Phosphate Mineral after Exposure to Sodium Phosphate in Vitro: Implications for in Vivo H…
2015
Studies indicate that mammalian bone formation is initiated at calcium carbonate bioseeds, a process that is driven enzymatically by carbonic anhydrase (CA). We show that amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) and bicarbonate (HCO3 (-) ) cause induction of expression of the CA in human osteogenic SaOS-2 cells. The mineral deposits formed on the surface of the cells are rich in C, Ca and P. FTIR analysis revealed that ACC, vaterite, and aragonite, after exposure to phosphate, undergo transformation into calcium phosphate. This exchange was not seen for calcite. The changes to ACC, vaterite, and aragonite depended on the concentration of phosphate. The rate of incorporation of phosphate into ACC, …
Aqueous two-phase system cold-set gelation using natural and recombinant probiotic lactic acid bacteria as a gelling agent
2016
The present study aimed to entrap probiotic lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in a sodium alginate and sodium caseinate aqueous two-phase gel system. The natural acidifying properties of two therapeutic probiotic LAB were exploited to liberate calcium ions progressively from calcium carbonate (CaCO3), which caused the gelation of the co-existing phases. Bi-biopolymeric matrix gelation of GDL/CaCO3 or LAB/CaCO3 was monitored by dynamic rheological measurements, and the final gels were characterized by frequency dependence measurements and confocal laser scanning microscopy. Weak to strong gels were formed with an elastic modulus G' from 10 to 1.000Pa, respectively. After cold-set gelation of our sy…