Calcium carbonate in biomineralisation and biomimetic chemistry

Nature is adept at controlling mineralisation processes to produce single crystals and polycrystalline and amorphous structures with remarkable morphologies and mechanical properties. Calcium carbonate is one of the most common biominerals, and as such has received considerable attention, both in terms of research into the processes used in vivo to control calcification, and application of identified strategies to control precipitation synthetically. After providing an initial description of the structure and properties of calcium carbonate, this review will examine the mechanisms used by organisms to influence calcium carbonate nucleation and growth and will then demonstrate how identified control strategies have been applied to synthetic systems. The emphasis of the review is on biomimetic engineering of calcium carbonate which is considered in three principal sections: control of crystal growth using soluble additives, crystal growth in confinement and calcium carbonate deposition on solid substrates.