Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Growing crystals in ultrasonic sound

D4RR3N - 19-7-2012 at 08:40

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YedgubRZva8

I was watching a video of the patterns sand makes when scattered over a vibrating plate (Chladni Plate). The higher the frequency the more complex the structures become and I started to think of ways of preserving these patterns at first. After some time I started to wonder how a crystals structure may be affected if it was grown in a high frequency, possibly ultrasonic sound wave?

Most people would have grown a crystal as a science project as a kid where you get a beaker full of saturated salt and place a wire or crystal at the center of the container to start the process. What would happen if that container was placed over a transducer with the sound left on?

Similarly what would be the effect on the structure of a metal if you cast it into a vibrating mold whilst still molten?

[Edited on 19-7-2012 by D4RR3N]

Wizzard - 19-7-2012 at 11:33

Some metals would turn to sand as they solidified, depending on the amplitude of the ultrasound wave. I dont think it will have much effect, other than tampering with the ionic forces in crystal growth (causing a mass of microcrystals- like normal metal).

Magnets, on the other hand, mess with crystal growth. Ferrous sulfate (with or without ammonia complex), is neat to grow under the affects of strong magnetism... The crystal structures will align on a broader scale, masses will grow in the same directions, and even single crystals will be split apart as their growth patterns are forced to deviate by the strength of the magnets.

D4RR3N - 20-7-2012 at 09:48

Some frequency's created honeycomb structures in the sand. It is well known that honeycomb structure increases the strength of a material. I was thinking if you could induce such structures to form on a micro scale within aluminum for example you could alter its strength. It is also possible that it could alter the electrical properties of some materials.