Circular patterns of calcium oxalate monohydrate induced by defective Langmuir–Blodgett film on quartz substrates

The defective Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) film of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) on quartz injured by potassium oxalate (K2C2O4) was used as a model system to induce growth of calcium oxalate crystals. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) indicated that circular defective domains with a diameter of 1–200 μm existed in the LB film. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed circular patterns of aggregated calcium oxalate monohydrate (COM) crystallites were induced by these defective domains. It was ascribed to that the interaction between the negatively-charged oxalate ions and the phosphatidyl groups in DPPC headgroups makes the phospholipid molecules rearranged and exist in an out-of-order state in the LB film, especially at the boundaries of liquid-condensed (LC)/liquid-expanded (LE) phases, which provide much more nucleating sites for COM crystals.