Opel, J., Brunner, J., Zimmermanns, R., Steegmans, T., Sturm, E., Kellermeier, M., … & García‐Ruiz, J. M. (2019). Symbiosis of Silica Biomorphs and Magnetite Mesocrystals. Advanced Functional Materials, 29(37), 1902047. Download here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/adfm.201902047 Silica biomorphs are extraordinary inorganic superstructures formed via autocatalytic co‐precipitation and bottom‐up self‐assembly of alkaline‐earth carbonates and silica. However, they show no inherent functionality except for their striking textural motifs and curved morphologies. This work presents strategies to magnetize silica biomorphs, thus creating thermally…

Opel, J., Unglaube, N., Wörner, M., Kellermeier, M., Cölfen, H., & García-Ruiz, J. M. (2019). Hybrid biomimetic materials from silica/carbonate biomorphs. Crystals, 9(3), 157. Download here: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/9/3/157 The formation of a polymer protection layer around fragile mineral architectures ensures that structures stay intact even after treatments that would normally destroy them going along with a total loss of textural information. Here we present a strategy to preserve the shape of silica-carbonate biomorphs with polymers. This method converts…

Saladino, R., Di Mauro, E., & García‐Ruiz, J. M. (2019). A Universal Geochemical Scenario for Formamide Condensation and Prebiotic Chemistry. Chemistry–A European Journal, 25(13), 3181-3189. Download here: https://chemistry-europe.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/chem.201803889 The condensation of formamide has been shown to be a robust chemical pathway affording molecules necessary for the origin of life. It has been experimentally demonstrated that condensation reactions of formamide are catalyzed by a number of minerals, including silicates, phosphates, sulfides, zirconia, and borates, and by cosmic dusts…

Zhang, G., Verdugo-Escamilla, C., Choquesillo-Lazarte, D., & García-Ruiz, J. M. (2018). Thermal assisted self-organization of calcium carbonate. Nature communications, 9(1), 1-7. Download here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-07658-0.pdf Fabrication of mineral multi-textured architectures by self-organization is a formidable challenge for engineering. Current approaches follow a biomimetic route for hybrid materials based on the coupling of carbonate and organic compounds. We explore here the chemical coupling of silica and carbonate, leading to fabrication of inorganic–inorganic biomimetic structures known as silica-carbonate biomorphs. So…

Otálora, F., Mazurier, A., Garcia-Ruiz, J. M., Van Kranendonk, M. J., Kotopoulou, E., El Albani, A., & Garrido, C. J. (2018). A crystallographic study of crystalline casts and pseudomorphs from the 3.5 Ga Dresser Formation, Pilbara Craton (Australia). Journal of applied crystallography, 51(4), 1050-1058.  Download here: https://journals.iucr.org/j/issues/2018/04/00/jo5036/jo5036.pdf Crystallography has a long history of providing knowledge and methods for applications in other disciplines. The identification of minerals using X-ray diffraction is one of the most important contributions of…