Precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) is a synthetic mineral product, which has found

application in various industrial fields, mainly as filler and/or pigment. However, the

application of PCC is strongly dependent on its morphology and the size distribution. The

control and design of a desired crystal morphology and crystal size can be achieved by

applying specific additives during crystal growth process. The process is actually controlled

by selective interaction of additives with distinct surface sites. The objective of the proposed

visit is to study the interactions of organic additives, particularly phosphonates and

carboxylates, with calcite crystals of different morphologies. Different experimental

approaches will be applied: sorption/precipitation growth kinetics analyses and surface

sensitive analytics, under the supervision of highly skilled scientist at Karlsruhe Institute of

Technology and Schaefer-Kalk. This visit would allow main applicant to learn about new

crystal growth techniques, such as mixed-flow reactor, to acquire the knowledge on

molecular processes at calcite/aqueous solution interfaces as well as to learn about the

precipitation of calcium carbonate at industrial scale. The main applicant will transfer this

knowledge to Ruđer Bošković Institute and the proposed visit would be the initial step for the

collaboration between the scientists from the institutions involved.