Malachite (Cu2(OH)2CO3) is an important precursor of Cu-catalysts for the WGS reaction.

The pictures show the unit cell of malachite (top left) and the plate-like morphology divided into unit cells (top right).

Note that the size of the unit cells in the plate is exaggerated
 
At the bottom, two highresolution TEM images of malachite crystals reveal the plate-like morphology.

Control of the size and morphology of the precursor malachite crystals is one of the corner stones in the high performance of the LK catalysts.