RT Journal Article
T1 Templated tube growth about a reactive gas plume: The pharaoh's serpent reaction, thermodecomposition of mercury thiocyanate in air
A1 Pimentel Guerra, Carlos
A1 Testón Martínez, Sergio
A1 Gutiérrez Ariza, Carlos
A1 Sainz Díaz, Ignacio
A1 Cartwright, Julyan H. E.
AB The pharaoh's serpent reaction, the thermodecomposition of mercury thiocyanate in air, is a classic chemical demonstration. We analyse and characterize the reaction products, composed of two different phases, graphitic carbon nitride, mathematical equationmathematical equation, and metacinnabar, HgS. We show that two growth modes are involved in forming the sinuous solid product; the more common one, jack-up growth, forms a solid cylinder from the base up. This is accompanied by a rarer second mode, chimney growth, in which fluid mechanics plays a fundamental role. In this second growth mode, reagents are transported in gaseous form in a reactive plume to be precipitated remotely on the growing rim of a tube templated around the plume. Such templated tube growth, while common in a liquid environment, for example, in the chemical-garden reaction, has not been reported in a gaseous medium.
PB Wiley
YR 2026
FD 2026-01-16
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/130659
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/130659
LA eng
NO Pimentel, C., Testón‐Martínez, S., Gutierrez‐Ariza, C., Sainz‐Díaz, C. I., & Cartwright, J. H. E. (2026). Templated tube growth about a reactive gas plume: The pharaoh’s serpent reaction, thermodecomposition of mercury thiocyanate in air. ChemSystemsChem, 8(1), e00066. https://doi.org/10.1002/syst.202500066
NO MICIU/AEI, the European COST Action CA21169 Dynalife
NO EU Framework Programme Horizon 2020
NO Labex OSUG@2020
DS Docta Complutense
RD 21 ene 2026