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Low-Dimensional Network Formation in Molten Sodium Carbonate

Wilding, MC; Wilson, M; Alderman, OLG; Benmore, C; Weber, JKR; Parise, JB; Tamalonis, A; (2016) Low-Dimensional Network Formation in Molten Sodium Carbonate. Scientific Reports , 6 , Article 24415. 10.1038/srep24415. Green open access

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Abstract

Molten carbonates are highly inviscid liquids characterized by low melting points and high solubility of rare earth elements and volatile molecules. An understanding of the structure and related properties of these intriguing liquids has been limited to date. We report the results of a study of molten sodium carbonate (Na 2 CO 3 ) which combines high energy X-ray diffraction, containerless techniques and computer simulation to provide insight into the liquid structure. Total structure factors (Fx(Q)) are collected on the laser-heated carbonate spheres suspended in flowing gases of varying composition in an aerodynamic levitation furnace. The respective partial structure factor contributions to Fx(Q) are obtained by performing molecular dynamics simulations treating the carbonate anions as flexible entities. The carbonate liquid structure is found to be heavily temperature-dependent. At low temperatures a low-dimensional carbonate chain network forms, at T = 1100 K for example ~55% of the C atoms form part of a chain. The mean chain lengths decrease as temperature is increased and as the chains become shorter the rotation of the carbonate anions becomes more rapid enhancing the diffusion of Na + ions.

Type: Article
Title: Low-Dimensional Network Formation in Molten Sodium Carbonate
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1038/srep24415
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep24415
Language: English
Additional information: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10041242
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