Elucidation of the crystal growth mechanism of melamine-cyanuric acid by using real time in situ atomic force microscopy

Real time in situ atomic force microscopy in aqueous media of melamine-cyanuric acid crystals, grown by hydrothermal methods, permitted unambiguous assignment of the crystal growth modes at the microscopic level, revealing that hydrophobic interactions between two-dimensional hydrogen-bonded planar sheets play a dominant role in the crystal growth of this material, which has been shown to cause renal failure.