Study on the Effect of PEG on the Morphology of Cerium Carbonate Crystals

The addsorption model of the polymer layer and polyethylene glycoa (PEG) molecules on the three crystal planes of cerium carbonate was constructed using Materials Studio software. The simulation results showed that the selective adsorption was used in the process of PEG-controlled cerium carbonate growth, which reduced the generation rate of cerium carbonate crystal planes, and the order of strong to weak adsorption of cerium carbonate crystal planes was (200)>(222)>(020). With the addition of ammonium carbonate, cerium carbonate becomes larger, PEG bends and twists; under the influence of this deformation, the cerium carbonate particles are drawn closer together, eventually forming a needle-like structure.