Review of Water-Based Synthetic Methods of Calcium Carbonate Polymorphs and Their Morphological Features

Abstract

Crystalline calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ) occurs in various geological and aqueous environments as calcite, aragonite, and vaterite. These minerals also have practical applications in engineered settings. Synthetic methods of calcium carbonate have been developed for scientific research and technical applications. For example, these methods have become widely adopted for studying the formation of CaCO 3 minerals and (geo-)chemical processes involving these minerals in natural and engineered systems. Furthermore, these methods have the potential to be applied in various technical and biomedical fields. Water-based synthesis is particularly important for simulating the formation of calcium carbonate minerals in natural aqueous environments. This review paper describes the procedures and experimental conditions for water-based synthetic methods of each calcium carbonate polymorph, compares the morphological and structural features of the resulting crystals, and analyzes the crystallization mechanisms.