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Surface Geochemistry

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Geochemistry

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

Synonyms

Interfacial geochemistry

Definition

The chemistry that occurs at the interface between two phases of matter.

Introduction

Das Volumen des Festkörpers schuf Gott,

ihre Oberfläche wurde vom Teufel gemacht. (W. Pauli)

The subject of surface chemistry extends across virtually all fields of the Earth sciences, although most research concerns the surface of a mineral in aqueous solutions because of the recognized importance of soil minerals to environmental chemistry . One could equally argue that interface chemistry is just as essential to atmospheric chemistry or even oceanography, however, or the myriad other fields within Earth science that don’t prominently state an interest in surface chemistry.

The term “surface” is poorly defined. It can refer to the region that is within a single-bond distance from material interface, or can extend over hundreds of nanometers, although one can encounter more restrictive definitions. The chemistry in this region is unique and exerts...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), 5232, Villigen, Switzerland

    Christian Ludwig

  2. École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Christian Ludwig

  3. Department of Chemistry, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616, USA

    William H. Casey

Authors
  1. Christian Ludwig
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  2. William H. Casey
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Christian Ludwig .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth, Cornell University Department of Earth, Ithaca, New York, USA

    William M. White

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Ludwig, C., Casey, W.H. (2017). Surface Geochemistry. In: White, W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geochemistry. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_14-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_14-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-39193-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-39193-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences

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