Crystallization

Crystallization (pronunciation: /ˌkrɪstəlaɪˈzeɪʃən/) is a process by which a chemical compound or substance forms solid crystals precipitating from a solution, melt or more rarely deposited directly from a gas.

Etymology

The term "crystallization" comes from the Greek word "krystallos" which means "ice" and "clear quartz". It was first used in the 17th century to describe the process of forming solid crystals from a solution or melt.

Related Terms

Crystal: A solid material whose atoms are arranged in a highly ordered, repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions.
Solution: A homogeneous mixture composed of two or more substances.
Precipitation (chemistry): The process of converting a chemical substance into a solid from a solution.
Melt: The process of making something become liquefied by heat.
Gas: One of the four fundamental states of matter.

Process

Crystallization occurs in two major steps. The first is nucleation, the appearance of a crystalline phase from either a supercooled liquid or a supersaturated solvent. The second step is known as crystal growth, which is the increase in the size of particles and leads to a crystal state.

Types of Crystallization

There are several types of crystallization, each defined by the conditions under which they occur. These include:

Evaporative Crystallization: This occurs when evaporation of the solvent allows the solute to crystallize.
Cooling Crystallization: This occurs when the solution cools and the solute becomes less soluble, leading to crystallization.
Reactive Crystallization: This occurs when a chemical reaction produces a product that then crystallizes.

Applications

Crystallization has many applications in various fields such as chemistry, pharmaceuticals, food industry, and material science. It is used to obtain pure samples of a substance, or to purify an impure substance.

External links

Medical encyclopedia article on Crystallization
Wikipedia's article - Crystallization

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Crystallization