crystallization

Also known as crystallisation

Crystallization is a process that leads to solids with a uniform pattern of atoms or molecules, i.e. a crystal. The uniform nature of a crystalline solid can be contrasted with amorphous solids in which atoms or molecules lack regular organization. Crystallization can occur by various routes including precipitation from solution, freezing of a liquid, or deposition from a gas. Attributes of the resulting crystal can depend largely on factors such as temperature, air pressure, cooling rate, or solute concentration.

AI overview

Crystallization is a process that produces solids with atoms or molecules arranged in a uniform, repeating pattern—unlike amorphous solids where atoms are randomly organized. This process matters because the properties of the resulting crystal depend heavily on conditions like temperature, pressure, and cooling rate, making crystallization important for controlling material quality in applications ranging from pharmaceuticals to materials science.

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Research

430,697 papers

Crystallization of MAP kinases.ReviewMethods (San Diego, Calif.) · 2006Lee SJ, Zhou T, Goldsmith EJDOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2006.05.003
Contactless crystallization method of protein by a magnetic force booster.Scientific reports · 2022Maki S, Hagiwara MDOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-21727-x
Surface-mutagenesis strategies to enable structural biology crystallization platforms.Acta crystallographica. Section D, Structural biology · 2024Schaefer M, Pütter V, Hilpmann A et al.DOI: 10.1107/S2059798324007939
2D crystallization of membrane proteins: rationales and examples.ReviewJournal of structural biology · 1998Hasler L, Heymann JB, Engel A et al.DOI: 10.1006/jsbi.1998.3960
Expression, purification, characterization and crystallization of Panax quinquefolius ginsenoside glycosyltransferase Pq3-O-UGT2.Protein expression and purification · 2024Ji Q, Liu Y, Chen C et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.pep.2024.106430
Crystallization of Lactose-Protein Solutions in the Presence of Flavonoids.Journal of agricultural and food chemistry · 2022Sánchez-García YI, Gutiérrez-Méndez N, Landeros-Martínez LL et al.DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.1c05315
Hydrophobic Interface-Assisted Protein Crystallization: Theory and Experiment.ACS applied materials & interfaces · 2019Nanev CN, Saridakis E, Govada L et al.DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b20995
Insights into pharmaceutical co-crystallization using coherent Raman microscopy.Journal of pharmaceutical sciences · 2025Arbiol Enguita AM, Harju E, Wurr L et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.xphs.2024.10.054

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Wikidata facts

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Commons category: Crystallization

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~26 min read

Article

22 sections

Contents

Process
In nature
Methods
Typical equipment
Thermodynamic view
Dynamics
Nucleation
Primary nucleation
Secondary nucleation
Growth
Size distribution
Main crystallization processes
Cooling crystallization
Application
Cooling crystallizers
Evaporative crystallization
Evaporative crystallizers
DTB crystallizer
See also
References
Further reading
External links

Crystallization occurs in two main phases. The first is nucleation, the appearance of a crystalline phase from either a supercooled liquid or a supersaturated solvent. The second step is known as crystal growth, which is the increase in the size of particles and leads to a crystal state. An important feature of this step is that loose particles form layers at the crystal's surface and lodge themselves into open inconsistencies such as pores, cracks, etc.