Aqueous formation and manipulation of the iron-oxo Keggin ion

There is emerging evidence that growth of synthetic and natural phases occurs by the aggregation of prenucleation clusters, rather than classical atom-by-atom growth. Ferrihydrite, an iron oxyhydroxide mineral, is the common form of Fe3+ in soils and is also in the ferritin protein. We isolated a 10...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2015-03, Vol.347 (6228), p.1359-1362
Main Authors: Sadeghi, Omid, Zakharov, Lev N., Nyman, May
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cellular
Clusters
Dissolution
Ferritin
Formations
Ions
Iron
Iron oxides
Minerals
Molecular chemistry
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Summary:There is emerging evidence that growth of synthetic and natural phases occurs by the aggregation of prenucleation clusters, rather than classical atom-by-atom growth. Ferrihydrite, an iron oxyhydroxide mineral, is the common form of Fe3+ in soils and is also in the ferritin protein. We isolated a 10 angstrom discrete iron-oxo cluster (known as the Keggin ion, Fe13) that has the same structural features as ferrihydrite. The stabilization and manipulation of this highly reactive polyanion in water is controlled exclusively by its counterions. Upon dissolution of Fe13 in water with precipitation of its protecting Bi3+-counterions, it rapidly aggregates to ∼22 angstrom spherical ferrihydrite nanoparticles. Fe13 may therefore also be a prenucleation cluster for ferrihydrite formation in natural systems, including by microbial and cellular processes.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.aaa4620