Gram-scale, low-cost, rapid synthesis of highly stable Mg-ACC nanoparticles and their long-term preservation

A simple chemistry route is reported for the gram-scale, low-cost, rapid synthesis of highly stable Mg-ACC nanoparticles. The possible structure of Mg-ACC can be defined as Mg(0.15)Ca(0.85)CO(3)center dot H(2)O(0.85). The molar ratio of Mg(2+):Ca(2+):CO(3)(2-) and the concentrations of the reactants (CaCl(2), Na(2)CO(3), andMgCl(2)) play important roles in the Mg:Ca molar ratio of the obtained Mg-ACC nanoparticles. In particular, Mg-ACC can be preserved for over one year without crystallization by either storing its dry powder at -5 degrees C or storing it in ethanol at 5 degrees C. The ability to synthesize Mg-ACC nanoparticles on a large scale is useful for biomineralization studies and industrial applications.