Case study

Detecting the unknown.

Electron diffraction completed the structural picture of a solid-state reaction – confirming what was happening inside a tablet.

The study

A reaction happening inside a tablet.

The Centre for Continuous Manufacturing and Advanced Crystallisation (CMAC), with the University of Strathclyde and others, used a non-destructive technique – X-ray diffraction computed tomography (XRD-CT) – to study solid-state chemical reactions inside tablets, building a full picture of the reactions taking place.

Complementing that work with electron diffraction, the structure of the solid-state reaction product was fully elucidated – giving direct proof of the proposed chemistry.

The ED-1 goniometer seen through the sample port

What electron diffraction contributed

The complementary technique that closed the case.

Structure from nano-crystals

Straightforward structural information from nanocrystalline material – no large single crystal required.

A complementary technique

ED sat alongside XRD-CT to confirm and complete the solid-state picture, not replace it.

Impurities & phases resolved

Impurities, side-products and different polymorphic phases can be characterised directly by ED.

Download the paper if you want to see

How ED closed the loop.

  • How electron-diffraction experiments contributed to the study.
  • How ED obtains structural information from nano-crystals.
  • Why ED matters as a complementary technique.
  • How impurities, side-products and polymorphic phases are characterised by ED.
Reciprocal-lattice visualisation from electron-diffraction data

Download the published paper.

See how electron diffraction elucidated the structure of a solid-state reaction product and confirmed the chemistry inside the tablet.

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