Polymerization of Carbon Dioxide: A Chemistry View of Molecular-to-Nonmolecular Phase Transitions

Under high pressure, simple molecular solids transform into nonmolecular (extended) solids as compression energies approach the energies of strong covalent bonds in constituent chemical species. Unlike molecular and extended phase transitions, these exhibit path dependent phases, phase boundaries, phase metastabilities, and structural distortions that lead to large uncertainties in both experimental and theoretical phase diagrams. Here we present experimental and theoretical evidence that carbon dioxide polymerizes to extended phase V at 20 GPa, indicating a substantially lower equilibrium phase boundary than previously suggested. Clearly, these results indicate extended structures are inherently more stable above 20 GPa and the presence of a strong activation barrier hindering the polymerization in the intermediate pressure region between 20 and 40 GPa. Further, the present results advocate a chemistry view of molecular to nonmolecular phase transitions governed by constraints to kinetics and local energy minima that go beyond thermodynamics and are analogous to the graphite–diamond transition.