A hydrated crystalline calcium carbonate phase: Calcium carbonate hemihydrate

Abstract

As one of the most abundant materials in the world, calcium carbonate, CaCO ₃, is the main constituent of the skeletons and shells of various marine organisms. It is used in the cement industry and plays a crucial role in the global carbon cycle and formation of sedimentary rocks. For more than a century, only three polymorphs of pure CaCO ₃—calcite, aragonite, and vaterite—were known to exist at ambient conditions, as well as two hydrated crystal phases, monohydrocalcite (CaCO ₃·1H ₂O) and ikaite (CaCO ₃·6H ₂O). While investigating the role of magnesium ions in crystallization pathways of amorphous calcium carbonate, we unexpectedly discovered an unknown crystalline phase, hemihydrate CaCO ₃·½H ₂O, with monoclinic structure. This discovery may have important implications in biomineralization, geology, and industrial processes based on hydration of CaCO ₃.