Aluminum hydroxide polymorphs play a key role in industrial aluminum production, yet their nucleation and growth kinetics remain beyond the reach of current models. Here, the authors study polymorph formation in situ from supersaturated alkaline sodium aluminate solutions using time-resolved neutron pair distribution function and complementary spectroscopy analyses, which indicate the formation of individual Al(OD)3 layers as an intermediate particle phase.
- Hsiu-Wen Wang
- Emily T. Nienhuis
- Carolyn I. Pearce
