| 1. |
- Hemming, Joanna M., et al.
(författare)
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Environmental Pollutant Ozone Causes Damage to Lung Surfactant Protein B (SP-B)
- 2015
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Ingår i: Biochemistry. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0006-2960 .- 1520-4995. ; 54:33, s. 5185-5197
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Lung surfactant protein B (SP-B) is an essential protein found in the surfactant fluid at the air water interface of the lung. Exposure to the air pollutant ozone could potentially damage SP-B and lead to respiratory distress. We have studied two peptides, one consisting of the N-terminus of SP-B [SP-B(1-25)] and the other a construct of the N- and C-termini of SP-B [SP-B-(1-25,B-63-78)], called SMB. Exposure to dilute levels of ozone (similar to 2 ppm) of monolayers of each peptide at the air water interface leads to a rapid reaction, which is evident from an increase in the surface tension. Fluorescence experiments revealed that this increase in surface tension is accompanied by a loss of fluorescence from the tryptophan residue at the interface. Neutron and X-ray reflectivity experiments show that, in contrast to suggestions in the literature, the peptides are not solubilized upon oxidation but rather remain at the interface with little change in their hydration. Analysis of the product material reveals that no cleavage of the peptides occurs, but a more hydrophobic product is slowly formed together with an increased level of oligomerization. We attributed this to partial unfolding of the peptides. Experiments conducted in the presence of phospholipids reveal that the presence of the lipids does not prevent oxidation of the peptides. Our results strongly suggest that exposure to low levels of ozone gas will damage SP-B, leading to a change in its structure. The implication is that the oxidized protein will be impaired in its ability to interact at the air water interface with negatively charged phosphoglycerol lipids, thus compromising what is thought to be its main biological function.
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| 2. |
- Larsen, Simon R., et al.
(författare)
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Sample cell for studying liquid interfaces with an in situ electric field using X-ray reflectivity and application to clay particles at oil–oil interfaces
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Synchrotron Radiation. - 0909-0495 .- 1600-5775. ; 25:Part: 3, s. 915-917
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Commissioning results of a liquid sample cell for X-ray reflectivity studies with an in situ applied electrical field are presented. The cell consists of a Plexiglas container with lateral Kapton windows for air-liquid and liquid-liquid interface studies, and was constructed with grooves to accept plate electrodes on the walls parallel to the direction of the beam. Both copper and ITO plate electrodes have been used, the latter being useful for simultaneous optical studies. Commissioning tests were made at the I07 beamline of the Diamond Light Source.
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| 3. |
- Berts, Ida, 1984-, et al.
(författare)
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Controlling adsorption of albumin with hyaluronan on silica surfaces and sulfonated latex particles
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Colloid and Interface Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0021-9797 .- 1095-7103. ; 504, s. 315-324
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Polysaccharides are known to modify binding of proteins at interfaces and this paper describes studies of these interactions and how they are modified by pH. Specifically, the adsorption of human serum albumin on to polystyrene latex and to silica is described, focusing on how this is affected by hyaluronan. Experiments were designed to test how such binding might be modified under relevant physiological conditions. Changes in adsorption of albumin alone and the co-adsorption of albumin and hyaluronan are driven by electrostatic interactions. Multilayer binding is found to be regulated by the pH of the solution and the molecular mass and concentration of hyaluronan. Highest adsorption was observed at pH below 4.8 and for low molecular mass hyaluronan (<= 150 kDa) at concentrations above 2 mg ml(-1). On silica with grafted hyaluronan, albumin absorption is reversed by changes in solvent pH due to their strong electrostatic attraction. Albumin physisorbed on silica surfaces is also rinsed away with dilute hyaluronan solution at pH 4.8. The results demonstrate that the protein adsorption can be controlled both by changes of pH and by interaction with other biological macromolecules.
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| 4. |
- Cockcroft, Jeremy K., et al.
(författare)
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Understanding the structure and dynamics of cationic surfactants from studies of pure solid phases
- 2019
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Ingår i: Physical Chemistry, Chemical Physics - PCCP. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1463-9076 .- 1463-9084. ; 21:47, s. 25945-25951
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A homologous series of n-alkyl trimethylammonium bromide surfactants, H(CH2)(n)N+(CH3)(3) Br-, from C(10)TAB to C(18)TAB have been studied systematically in the bulk over a wide range of temperatures. Common features in the structures are identified, with packing dominated by the co-ordination of the cationic head groups with bromide anions and interdigitation of the hydrocarbon chains. This arrangement provides an explanation for the thin adsorbed bilayers that have been observed at various hydrophilic surfaces from aqueous solutions in previous studies. The molecular volumes and arrangement are comparable with structures of a number of different self-assembled amphiphiles. For these surfactants with bromide counter-ions, formation of crystal hydrates was not observed. The alkyl chains are highly mobile and at high temperatures a plastic phase is found for all materials with a transition enthalpy that is similar to the melting enthalpy of many long alkyl chains. Other unexpected phase transitions depend more markedly on the hydrocarbon chain length and evidently depend on delicate balances of the various contributions to the free energy.
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| 5. |
- Jones, Stephanie H., et al.
(författare)
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Are organic films from atmospheric aerosol and sea water inert to oxidation by ozone at the air-water interface?
- 2017
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Ingår i: Atmospheric Environment. - : PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD. - 1352-2310 .- 1873-2844. ; 161, s. 274-287
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The heterogeneous oxidation of thin films of organic material extracted from real aerosol and sea-water samples was studied at the air-water interface using X-ray reflectivity. Oxidation of thin films of organic material extracted from real aerosol and sea-water is important in further understanding the impact of coated aerosols on the climate of the Earth. Surface active insoluble organic material extracted from the atmosphere was found to form stable films at the air-water interface (thickness measured as 10-14 nm). On exposure of the films to gas-phase ozone, no reaction (or change in the relative scattering length of the interface) was observed, indicating a potential lack of unsaturated organic material in the samples. Gas chromatography and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry showed the presence of saturated compounds in the samples. It is therefore proposed that the amount of unsaturated compounds as compared to saturated compounds in the atmospheric material is so low that the mass spectrometry analyses, as well as gas-phase oxidation are dominated by saturated material. A reaction was observed on exposure of the same films to aqueous phase hydroxyl and nitrate radicals and a film thinning mechanism is proposed to explain the change in scattering length of the film at the air-water interface. It can be suggested tentatively that oxidation by gas-phase ozone is not important in the atmosphere for organic films on aqueous atmospheric aerosol and that further studies should focus on radical induced oxidation of saturated organic material instead of unsaturated proxies that are typically studied.
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| 6. |
- Kwaambwa, Habauka M., et al.
(författare)
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Interaction of Moringa oleifera seed protein with a mineral surface and the influence of surfactants
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of Colloid and Interface Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0021-9797 .- 1095-7103. ; 448, s. 339-346
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The paper describes the adsorption of purified protein from seeds of Moringa olelfera to a sapphire interface and the effects of addition of the anionic surfactant sodium dodecylsulfate (SOS) and the cationic surfactant hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). Neutron reflection was used to determine the structure and composition of interfacial layers adsorbed at the solid/solution interface. The maximum surface excess of protein was found to be about 5.3 mg m(-2). The protein does not desorb from the solid/liquid interface when rinsed with water. Addition of SDS increases the reflectivity indicating co-adsorption. It was observed that CTAB is able to remove the protein from the interface. The distinct differences to the behavior observed previously for the protein at the silica/water interface are identified. The adsorption of the protein to alumina in addition to other surfaces has shown why it is an effective flocculating agent for the range of impurities found in water supplies. The ability to tailor different surface layers in combination with various surfactants also offers the potential for adsorbed protein to be used in separation technologies.
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| 7. |
- Li, Ning Ning, et al.
(författare)
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Neutron reflectometry of anionic surfactants on sapphire : A strong maximum in the adsorption near the critical micelle concentration
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Colloid and Interface Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0021-9797 .- 1095-7103. ; 471, s. 81-88
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The adsorption of the anionic surfactants, lithium, sodium and cesium dodecylsulfates, and sodium decylsulfonate, on the positively charged C-plane (0001) of sapphire (alumina) has been measured using neutron reflection. For each of the four surfactants there is a strong maximum in the adsorption at about the critical micelle concentration. The maximum becomes more marked from lithium to cesium. The measurements were reproduced over a range of different physical conditions and could not be accounted for in terms of impurities. The maximum is explained quantitatively by using the combination of a mass action model to calculate the mean activity of the surfactant, and a cooperative model of the adsorption (Frumkin), in which saturation of the layer is not attained until well above the critical micelle concentration.
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| 8. |
- Moulin, Martine, et al.
(författare)
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Perdeuteration of cholesterol for neutron scattering applications using recombinant Pichia pastoris
- 2018
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Ingår i: Chemistry and Physics of Lipids. - : Elsevier. - 0009-3084 .- 1873-2941. ; 212, s. 80-87
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Deuteration of biomolecules has a major impact on both quality and scope of neutron scattering experiments. Cholesterol is a major component of mammalian cells, where it plays a critical role in membrane permeability, rigidity and dynamics, and contributes to specific membrane structures such as lipid rafts. Cholesterol is the main cargo in low and high-density lipoprotein complexes (i.e. LDL, HDL) and is directly implicated in several pathogenic conditions such as coronary artery disease which leads to 17 million deaths annually. Neutron scattering studies on membranes or lipid-protein complexes exploiting contrast variation have been limited by the lack of availability of fully deuterated biomolecules and especially perdeuterated cholesterol. The availability of perdeuterated cholesterol provides a unique way of probing the structural and dynamical properties of the lipoprotein complexes that underly many of these disease conditions. Here we describe a procedure for in vivo production of perdeuterated recombinant cholesterol in lipid-engineered Pichia pastoris using flask and fed batch fermenter cultures in deuterated minimal medium. Perdeuteration of the purified cholesterol was verified by mass spectrometry and its use in a neutron scattering study was demonstrated by neutron reflectometry measurements using the FIGARO instrument at the ILL.
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| 9. |
- Nouhi, Shirin, et al.
(författare)
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Comparative study of flocculation and adsorption behaviour of water treatment proteins from Moringa peregrina and Moringa oleifera seeds
- 2019
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Ingår i: Scientific Reports. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 2045-2322. ; 9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Trees of Moringa oleifera are the most widely exploited species of Moringa and proteins extracted from its seeds have been identified as the most efficient natural coagulant for water purification. Largely for climatic reasons, other Moringa species are more accessible in some regions and this paper presents a comparative study of the adsorption to different materials of the proteins extracted from seeds of Moringa peregrina and Moringa oleifera to explore their use as flocculating agents in regions where each is more readily accessible. Results showed that Moringa peregrina seed proteins had higher adsorption to alumina compared to silica, in contrast to opposite behavior for Moringa oleifera. Both species provide cationic proteins that can act as effective coagulants for the various impurities with different surface potential. Despite the considerable similarity of the amino acid composition, the seed proteins have significantly different adsorption and this presents the opportunity to improve processes by choosing the optimal species or combination of species depending on the type of impurity or possible development of separation processes.
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| 10. |
- Nouhi, Shirin, et al.
(författare)
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Grazing-Incidence Small Angle Neutron Scattering from Structures below an Interface
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of applied crystallography. - 0021-8898 .- 1600-5767. ; 50:4, s. 1066-1074
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Changes of scattering are observed as the grazing angle of incidence of an incoming beam increases and probes different depths in samples. A model has been developed to describe the observed intensity in grazing incidence small angle neutron scattering (GISANS) experiments. This includes the significant effects of instrument resolution, the sample transmission, which depends on both absorption and scattering, as well as the sample structure. The calculations are tested with self-organised structures of two colloidal samples with different size particles that were measured on two different instruments. The model allows calculations for various instruments with defined resolution and can be used to design future improved experiments. The possibilities and limits of GISANS for different studies are discussed using the model calculations.
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| 11. |
- Nouhi, Shirin, et al.
(författare)
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Sticking particles to solid surfaces using Moringa oleifera proteins as a glue
- 2018
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Ingår i: Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-7765 .- 1873-4367. ; 168, s. 68-75
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Experimental studies have been made to test the idea that seed proteins from Moringa oleifera which are novel, natural flocculating agents for many particles could be used to promote adhesion at planar interfaces and hence provide routes to useful nanostructures. The proteins bind irreversibly to silica interfaces. Surfaces that had been exposed to protein solutions and rinsed were then exposed to dispersions of sulfonated polystyrene latex. Atomic force microscopy was used to count particle density and identified that the sticking probability was close to 1. Measurements with a quartz crystal microbalance confirmed the adhesion and indicated that repeated exposures to solutions of Moringa seed protein and particles increased the coverage. Neutron reflectivity and scattering experiments indicate that particles bind as a monolayer. The various results show that the 2S albumin seed protein can be used to fix particles at interfaces and suggest routes for future developments in making active filters or improved interfaces for photonic devices.
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| 12. |
- Nouhi, Shirin, 1987-
(författare)
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Structure formation at solid/liquid interfaces : Understanding self-assembly and environmental challenges
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The work described in the present dissertation has explored the structure of particles and molecules at solid/liquid interfaces, aiming to understand the physics of self-organizing systems and use this knowledge to address some environmental issues. Surface-sensitive neutron scattering techniques, such as reflectometry and grazing incidence small angle scattering, have been used as the primary tool to investigate structures in proximity to an interface. Some of the challenges in the interpretation of neutron scattering data are discussed, and new methods for analyzing the signal have been proposed.It was shown that charged stabilized colloidal particles can self-assemble and form large areas (20 cm2) of crystalline structures, close to a smooth solid surface extending to depths of several micrometers, while orienting themselves into smaller crystallites in the bulk of the suspension. The adsorption of proteins from the seeds of different species of Moringa trees on alumina, silica and polystyrene surfaces was studied, as a means for using proteins from different sources and with different properties, for the water clarification step in the purification process. The seed proteins also showed to enable locking the structure of colloidal particles at the solid/liquid interface, acting as a molecular glue.Perfluorinated surfactants (PFASs), widely used in industrial, pharmaceutical and food packing products, have been identified as emerging pollutants, raising a global concern for the environment and wildlife. The present study has shown how PFASs molecules of different fluorocarbon chain length and with different functional groups, create defects in model membranes by partitioning and removing phospholipids from the bilayer, making the bilayer thin and less dense.The effect of interface roughness was studied on the lamellar structure of a non-ionic surfactant. Concentrated solutions of the surfactant have been shown to form well-ordered and well-aligned structures at a smooth interface, which could be modified further by simply heating the sample. However it was found that even small roughness, of the same order as the bilayer thickness, can distort the structure to a depth of several micrometers from the interface. Heating the sample could improve the alignment but not as much as that formed at a smooth surface.
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| 13. |
- Olsson, Anders, et al.
(författare)
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Boron carbide composite apertures for small-angle neutron scattering made by three-dimensional printing
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of applied crystallography. - 0021-8898 .- 1600-5767. ; 49:2, s. 696-699
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Apertures for small-angle neutron scattering prepared from a boron carbide/polymer composite have been made by three-dimensional printing using fused filament fabrication. Use of enriched (B4C)-B-10 gives higher absorption and much lower parasitic scattering than natural B4C. The simple fabrication, the capability to replace toxic and environmentally hazardous materials such as cadmium, and the possibility to diminish the secondary background of gamma-radiation are attractive features of use of these materials. Complex shapes, apart from apertures, can be fabricated readily with this composite, for example, to make shielding for instrument components and masks used to calibrate detectors.
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| 14. |
- Olsson, Anders, et al.
(författare)
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New possibilities using additive manufacturing with materials that are difficult to process and with complex structures
- 2017
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Ingår i: Physica Scripta. - : IOP PUBLISHING LTD. - 0031-8949 .- 1402-4896. ; 92:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Additive manufacturing (or 3D printing) opens the possibility of creating new designs and manufacturing objects with new materials rapidly and economically. Particularly for use with polymers and polymer composites, simple printers can make high quality products, and these can be produced easily in offices, schools and in workshops and laboratories. This technology has opened a route for many to test ideas or to make custom devices. It is possible to easily manufacture complex geometries that would be difficult or even impossible to create with traditional methods. Naturally this technology has attracted attention in many fields that include the production of medical devices and prostheses, mechanical engineering as well as basic sciences. Materials that are highly problematic to machine can be used. We illustrate process developments with an account of the production of printer parts to cope with polymer fillers that are hard and abrasive; new nozzles with ruby inserts designed for such materials are durable and can be used to print boron carbide composites. As with other materials, complex parts can be printed using boron carbide composites with fine structures, such as screw threads and labels to identify materials. General ideas about design for this new era of manufacturing customised parts are presented.
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| 15. |
- Rennie, Adrian R., 1957-
(författare)
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Basic X-ray scattering for soft matter
- 2017
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Ingår i: Crystallography Reviews. - : TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD. - 0889-311X .- 1476-3508. ; 23:2, s. 152-153
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Recension (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)
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| 16. |
- Schmitt, Julien, et al.
(författare)
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Outset of the Morphology of Nanostructured Silica Particles during Nucleation Followed by Ultrasmall-Angle X-ray Scattering
- 2016
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Ingår i: Langmuir. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0743-7463 .- 1520-5827. ; 32:20, s. 5162-5172
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nucleation and growth of SBA-15 silica nanostructured particles with well-defined morphologies has been followed with time by small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and ultrasmall-angle X-ray scattering (USAXS), using synchrotron radiation. Three different morphologies have been compared: platelets, toroids, and rods. SEM observations of the particles confirm that two key physical parameters control the morphology: the temperature and the stirring of the solution. USAXS curves demonstrate that primary particles with a defined shape are present very early in the reaction mixture, immediately after a very fast nucleation step. This nucleation step is detected at 10 min (56 degrees C) or 15 min (50 degrees C) after the addition of the silica precursor. The main finding is that the USAXS signal is different for each type of morphology, and we demonstrate that the difference is related to the shape of the particles, showing characteristic form factors for the different morphologies (platelet, toroid, and rod). Moreover, the size of the mesocrystal domains is correlated directly with the particle dimensions and shape. When stirred, aggregation between primary particles is detected even after 12 min (56 degrees C). The platelet morphology is promoted by constant stirring of the solution, through an oriented aggregation step between primary particles. In contrast, toroids and rods are only stabilized under static conditions. However, for toroids, aggregation is detected almost immediately after nucleation.
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