Shared and closed-shell O-O interactions in silicates

Bond paths of maximum electron density spanning O-O edges shared between equivalent or quasiequivalent MOn (n > 4) coordination polyhedra are not uncommon electron density features displayed by silicates. On the basis of the positive values for the local electronic energy density, H(rc), at the bond critical points, rc, they qualify as weak "closed-shell" interactions. As observed for M-O bonded interactions (M = first and second row metal atoms), the electron density, rho(rc), and the Laplacian of the electron density increase in a regular way as the separation between the O atoms, R(O-O), decreases. A simple model, based on R(O-O) and the distances of the Si atoms from the midpoint between adjacent pairs of O atoms, partitions the O-O bond paths in the high-pressure silica polymorph coesite into two largely disjoint domains, one with and one without bond paths. The occurrence of O-O bond paths shared in common between equivalent coordination polyhedra suggests that they may be grounded in some cases on factors other than bonded interactions, particularly since they are often displayed by inert procrystal representations of the electron density. In these cases, it can be argued that the accumulation of the electron density along the paths has its origin, at least in part, in the superposition of the peripheral electron density distributions of the metal M atoms occupying the edge-sharing polyhedra. On the other hand, the accumulation of electron density along the paths may stabilize a structure by shielding the adjacent M atoms in the edge-sharing polyhedra. For closed-shell Li-O, Na-O, and Mg-O interactions, H(rc) is positive and increases as the value of rho(rc) increases, unlike the "shared" Be-O, B-O, C-O, Al-O, Si-O, P-O, and S-O interactions, where H(rc) is negative and decreases as rho(rc) increases. The H(rc) values for the weak closed-shell O-O interactions also increase as rho(rc) increases, as observed for the closed-shell M-O interactions. On the basis of the bond critical point properties and the negative H(rc) value, the O-O interaction comprising the O2 molecule in silica III qualifies as a shared interaction.     

Influence of silicon coordination surrounding on the chemical structure of oxides

A comparative analysis of structural features of SiO₂ polymorphic modifications was made by Raman, and high-resolution electronic spectroscopy. It was found that the presence of isolated Si-O, Si-Si, and O-O oscillators in the ground and electronically excited states is a characteristic feature of all the structures involving silicon atoms in oxygen tetrahedral coordination surrounding. It was shown that the increase in the silicon coordination number to six (stishovite) leads to a decrease in the extent of formation of electronically excited states due to removal of barriers to the relaxation of excitation energies. This conclusion is confirmed by the low-frequency shift of the fundamental absorption and by the disappearance of the high-frequency anomaly (Si-O) and characteristic lines of Si-Si oscillators.     

Role of framework sodium versus local framework structure in determining the hydrothermal stability of MCM-41 mesostructures.

Two mesostructured MCM-41 silicas that differ dramatically in hydrothermal stability have been examined by (29)Si MAS NMR spectroscopy and pair distribution function (PDF) analysis of synchrotron X-ray scattering data. The less stable mesostructure assembled from sodium silicate and the substantially more stable derivative made from fumed silica possess equivalent local framework wall structures, as judged by NMR and PDF methods. Approximately 80% of the SiO(4) tetrahedra are fully cross-linked as Q(4) (Si(OSi)(4)) units in both calcined samples. Additionally, the structural correlation distances for the two materials are nearly identical, having values of 1.62(1), approximately 2.60, and 3.09(1) A for the Si-O, O-O, and nearest neighbor Si-Si distances in the framework. Sodium ions in the framework play a crucial role in limiting the hydrothermal stability of the mesostructure. Residual sodium ( approximately 0.05-0.10% Na(2)O) is retained in the MCM-41 made from sodium silicate, even after two ion exchange reactions with ammonium ions in more than 300 - fold excess. The entrapped framework sodium ions catalyze the collapse of the mesopores upon exposure to 20% steam at 800 degrees C for 5 h. The sodium - free mesostructure assembled from fumed silica retains an open framework under the same hydrothermal conditions. The stability of the fumed silica derivative, however, is greatly compromised when doped with as little as 0.10% Na(2)O, thus confirming the deleterious effect of sodium on hydrothermal stability.     

X-ray diffraction investigation of siloxanes. II. Dependence of the structure of cyclic trisiloxanes on the nature of organic substituents at the silicon atom

The structure of six cyclic trisiloxane compounds with various combinations of carbon and oxygen-containing organic radicals Me, Ph, 2mPh, and 3mPh attached to the silicon atoms and lying in different positions of the trisiloxane cycle has been studied. The Si-O bond lengths vary within wide limits (1.607(5)–1.643(2) Å). Introduction of one or two 2mPh or 3mPh oxygen-containing radicals in the 1,1-position of the trisiloxane ring results in Si-O interatomic distances shortened to 1.624(3) Å. When two 3mPh radicals are in the 1,3-positions, the Si-O bond length decreases to 1.607(5) Å. The calculated charges on the silicon and oxygen atoms of the siloxane ring indicated that there is poor correlation between the charged state of the silicon atom and the Si-O bond length.     

Nature of point defects on SiO2/Mo(112) thin films and their interaction with Au atoms

We have studied by means of periodic DFT calculations the structure and properties of point defects at the surface of ultrathin silica films epitaxially grown on Mo(112) and their interaction with adsorbed Au atoms. For comparison, the same defects have been generated on an unsupported silica film with the same structure. Four defects have been considered: nonbridging oxygen (NBO, [triple bond]Si-O(*)), Si dangling bond (E' center, [triple bond]Si(*)), oxygen vacancy (V(O), [triple bond]Si-Si[triple bond]), and peroxo group ([triple bond]Si-O-O-Si[triple bond]), but only the NBO and the V(O) centers are likely to form on the SiO(2)/Mo(112) films under normal experimental conditions. The [triple bond]Si-O(*) center captures one electron from Mo forming a silanolate group, [triple bond]Si-O(-), sign of a direct interaction with the metal substrate. Apart from the peroxo group, which is unreactive, the other defects bind strongly the Au atom forming stable surface complexes, but their behavior may differ from that of the same centers generated on an unsupported silica film. This is true in particular for the two most likely defects considered, the nonbridging oxygen, [triple bond]Si-O(*), and the oxygen vacancy, [triple bond]Si-Si[triple bond].     

硅含量对Al2O3-SiO2气凝胶结构和性能的影响

研究了硅含量对Al2O3-SiO2气凝胶结构和性能的影响.结果表明,随着硅含量的增加,Al2O3-SiO2溶胶的凝胶时间逐渐延长,气凝胶密度逐渐增大.其结构逐渐由多晶勃姆石向无定形SiO2过渡.Al2O3-SiO2气凝胶同时含有Al-O、Si-O以及Al-O-Si结构,600 ℃煅烧后的物相为无定形γ-Al2O3和SiO2,1 200 ℃煅烧后为莫来石相.当硅含量为6.1wt%～13.1wt%时,适量的硅抑制了Al2O3-SiO2气凝胶的相变,其1 000℃的比表面积(339～445 m2·g-1)高于纯Al2O3气凝胶(157 m2·g-1).SEM分析表明,硅元素的加入改变了Al2O3气凝胶的结构形貌,随着硅含量的增大,Al2O3-SiO2气凝胶逐渐由针叶状或长条状向球状颗粒转变.     

Speciation of CuO in MCM-41 during oxidation of naphthalene

By extended X-ray absorption fine structural (EXAFS) spectroscopy, copper oxide clusters with a square-plane structure are found in the channels of mesoporous molecular sieve MCM-41. Bond distances of Cu–O and Cu–Cu are 1.90 and 2.80 Å, respectively. Oxidation of naphthalene at 723 K for 4 h in MCM-41 leads to structural perturbation of the clusters (e.g., Cu–O: −0.02 Å and Cu–Cu: +0.02 Å) with little change in their coordination numbers.     

Preparation and microstructure of sol-gel derived silver-doped silica

Silver-doped silica was prepared by hydrolysis and condensation of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS, Si(OC₂H₅)₄) in the presence of a silver nitrate (AgNO₃) solution by two different synthesis methods. In the first synthesis route, sol-gel mixtures were prepared using an acid catalyst. In the second synthesis route, silver-doped silica gels were formed by two-step acid/base catalysis. For the same concentration of silver dopant [AgNO₃]/[TEOS] = 0.015 acid-catalyzed sol-gel formed a microporous silica with an average pore size of <25 Å whereas the two-step catalyzed silica had an average pore size of 250 Å and exhibited a mesoporous structure when fully dried. The differences in the pore size affected the silver particle formation mechanism and post-calcination silver particle size. After calcination at 800 °C for 2 h the acid-catalyzed silica contained metallic silver particles size with an average particle size of 24 ± 2 nm whereas two-step catalyzed silica with the same concentration of [AgNO₃]/[TEOS] = 0.015 contained silver nanoparticles with an average size of approximately 32 ± 2 nm. Mechanisms for silver particle formation and for silica matrix crystallization with respect to the processing route and calcination temperature are discussed.     

Tuning the mechanical properties in model nanocomposites: Influence of the polymer‐filler interfacial interactions

This article presents a study of the polymer‐filler interfacial effects on filler dispersion and mechanical reinforcement in Polystyrene (PS)/silica nanocomposites by direct comparison of two model systems: ungrafted and PS‐grafted silica dispersed in PS matrix. The structure of nanoparticles has been investigated by combining small angle neutron scattering measurements and transmission electronic microscopic images. The mechanical properties were studied over a wide range of deformation by plate–plate rheology and uni‐axial stretching. At low silica volume fraction, the particles arrange, for both systems, in small finite size nonconnected aggregates and the materials exhibit a solid‐like behavior independent of the local polymer‐fillers interactions suggesting that reinforcement is dominated by additional long range effects. At high silica volume fraction, a continuous connected network is created leading to a fast increase of reinforcement whose amplitude is then directly dependent on the strength of the local particle–particle interactions and lower with grafting likely due to deformation of grafted polymer. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2011     

Structural study of lanthanides(III) in aqueous nitrate and chloride solutions by EXAFS

Structural studies of lanthanide ions (Nd³⁺≈Lu³⁺: about 1 mol/l) in the aqueous chloride (HCl: 0≈6 mol/l) and nitrate (HNO₃: 0?13 mol/l) solutions were carried out by extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS). The radial structural functions appeared to be mainly characterized by hydration in both chloride and nitrate systems and coordination of nitrate ion in nitrate systems. These results indicated that nitrate ion forms inner-sphere complex with lanthanide but chloride ion hardly forms one. The quantitative analyses of EXAFS data have revealed that the total coordination numbers of lanthanide ranged from about 9 for light lanthanides to about 8 for heavy lanthanides in all the samples. The bond distances of Ln?O were from about 2.3 to 2.5 Å for Ln?OH₂ and from about 2.4 to 2.6 Å for Ln?O₂NO. Nitrate ion locates at 0.1 Å longer position than water, it suggested that nitrate ion ligates more weakly than water.     

A hierarchic structure in zirconium butoxide complexes in <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-butanol solutions

The structure of particles in zirconium n-butoxide solutions in n-butyl alcohol is determined by means of EXAFS, SAXS, and molecular mechanics modeling. Zirconium atoms are found to be bonded to each other via the oxygen atom and to form large anisotropic particles in the solution. Primary particles have a shape close to spherical; their diameter together with the solvate shell is 28.9 Å. These particles then aggregate into anisotropic structures. During solution aging under normal conditions without contact with the atmosphere, the particle anisotropy increases because of the aggregation of complexes. When the solution concentration decreases, the particles are divided into primary spherical particles with a characteristic size of 28.9 Å. The described changes are confirmed by a decrease in the number of Zr-Zr distances of 4.8 Å and 5.1 Å, which according to the EXAFS data, correspond to the bonds between the primary particles. The characteristic maximum sizes of particles in solutions with concentrations from 0.1 g to 0.003 g ZrO₂/ml are 160–80 Å.     

Volume transition and internal structures of small poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) microgels

Monodispersed poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) nanoparticles, with hydrodynamic radius less than 50 nm at room temperature, have been synthesized in the presence of a large amount of emulsifiers. These microgel particles undergo a swollen–collapsed volume transition in an aqueous solution when the temperature is raised to around 34 °C. The volume transition and structure changes of the microgel particles as a function of temperature are probed using laser light scattering and small angle neutron scattering (SANS) with the objective of determining the small particle internal structure and particle–particle interactions. Apart from random fluctuations in the crosslinker density below the transition temperature, we find that, within the resolution of the experiments, these particles have a uniform radial crosslinker density on either side of the transition temperature. This result is in contrast to previous reports on the heterogeneous structures of larger PNIPAM microgel particles, but in good agreement with recent reports based on computer simulations of smaller microgels. The particle interactions change across the transition temperature. At temperatures below the transition, the interactions are described by a repulsive interaction far larger than that expected for a hard sphere contact potential. Above the volume transition temperature, the potential is best described by a small, attractive interaction. Comparison of the osmotic second virial coefficient from static laser light scattering at low concentrations with similar values determined from SANS at 250‐time greater concentration suggests a strong concentration dependence of the interaction potential. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 849–860, 2005     

Structure of zirconium butoxide complexes in n-butanol solutions

EXAFS and SAXS were used for structure elucidation of zirconium butoxide complexes in n-butanol at concentrations from 0.3 g to 0.015 g ZrO₂ in 1 ml. The basic structural unit of the complex is a tetramer. It has two equal sides with zirconium atoms linked by double oxygen bridges and with zirconium-zirconium distances of 3.5 Å. The other sides in the tetramer are 3.3 Å and 3.9 Å. This difference in bond lengths is explained by the different numbers of double or single ligand bridges between zirconium atoms. The tetramers are apt to undergo oligomerization to form particles with a diameter of 80 Å in solution.     

Fast Solvating Gas Chromatography of Environmentally Important Compounds Using Polymer-Encapsulated Silica Particles

Rapid separations of selected environmentally important polar compounds using polymer-encapsulated silica stationary phases and a carbon dioxide mobile phase under solvating gas chromatography (SGC) conditions are reported. Ten underivatized short chain aldehydes and ten nitrogen-containing herbicides were separated within 1 min and 5 min, respectively, using a 30 cm×250 μm i. d. column packed with diol-bonded, polyethylenimine (PEI)-coated, and hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS)-end-capped silica particles (5 μm, 120 Å). Seven organophosphorus pesticides were resolved in less than 5 min using a 30 cm×250 μm i. d. column packed with polymethylhydrosiloxane-deactivated and SE-54 encapsulated silica particles. Separation numbers per unit time increased with pressure and temperature ramps. Both rapid pressure and temperature programming can be used to increase the speed of SGC. The effects of pressure and temperature on apparent retention factors of solutes with various polarities were investigated using diol-PEI-HMDS silica particles in SGC.     

Local structure and charge distribution in the UO(2)-U(4)O(9) system

Analysis of X-ray absorption fine structure spectra of UO(2+x) for x = 0-0.20 (UO(2)--U(4)O(9)) reveals that the adventitious O atoms are incorporated as oxo groups with U--O distances of 1.74 A, most likely associated with U(VI), that occur in clusters so that the UO(2) fraction of the material largely remains intact. In addition to the formation of some additional longer U--O bonds, the U sublattice consists of an ordered portion that displays the original U--U distance and a spectroscopically silent, glassy part. This is very different from previous models derived from neutron diffraction that maintained long U--O distances and high U--O coordination numbers. UO(2+x) also differs from PuO(2+x) in its substantially shorter An-oxo distances and no sign of stable coordination with H(2)O and its hydrolysis products.     

Contributions on thermal behaviour and crystal chemistry of anhydrous phosphates. XIX. Tri-chromium(II)-bis-phosphate Cr3(PO4)2 (≙ Cr6(PO4)4) – A transition metal(II)-orthophosphate with new structure type

Deep blue-violet single crystals of hitherto unknown chromous orthophosphate have been obtained reducing CrPO₄ by elemental Cr at temperatures above 1050°C in evacuated silica ampoules (NH₄I or I₂ as mineraliser). The complex structure of Cr₃(PO₄)₂ (P2₁2₁2₁, Z = 8, a = 8.4849(10) Å, b = 10.3317(10) Å, c = 14.206(2) Å) contains six crystallographically independent Cr²⁺ per unit cell. Five of them are coordinated by four oxygen atoms which form a distorted (roof shaped) square plane as first coordination sphere at interatomic distances 1.96 Å ? d(Cr? O) ? 2.15 Å. Their coordination is completed by additional oxygen atoms (2 or 3) at distances 2.32 Å ? d(Cr? O) ? 3.21 Å. The sixth Cr²⁺ shows six-fold octahedral coordination with strong radial distortion (d(Cr? O): 1.97, 2.04, 2.15, 2.28, 2.29, 2.53 Å). The four different [PO₄] groups exhibit only minor deviations from ideal tetrahedral geometry (1.51 Å ? d(P? O) ? 1.57 Å, 104.3° ? ∠(O? P? O) ? 114.4°). An unusually low magnetic moment μ_exp = 4.28(2) μ_B (θ_P = ?54.8(5) K) has been observed for Cr²⁺.     

Small-angle neutron scattering studies on binary mixtures of polystyrene and perfluorinated particles

Small-angle neutron scattering measurements (SANS) studies have been carried out on binary mixtures of small polystyrene particles (radius 315 Å) and larger perfluorinated particles (radius 664 Å). Both types of particles were spherical, monodisperse and negatively charged in the aqueous conditions used. Electrostatic interactions between the particles in each type of dispersion were examined by determining the structure factor of the dispersions. Good agreement with the experimental data and theory were obtained with the rescaled mean-spherical-approximation-model (RMSA). An alternative approach for predicting the structure factor using an equivalent hard-sphere model also gave good agreement with the experimental data. In the case of binary mixtures, with the FEP particles contrast matched, the radial distribution function indicated extensive ordering of the polystyrene particles. In addition there was evidence, at high number ratios of small particles, of cluster formation of small particles with some rejection of these from the ordered arrangement.     

Small-angle neutron scattering of colloidal silica dispersions in a non-polar solvent

Small-angle neutron scattering studies were performed on dilute dispersions of colloidal silica spheres in mixtures of h₁₂- and d₁₂-cyclohexane. The particles consisted of a SiO₂-core and a layer of stearyl alcohol molecules terminally attached with a chemical bond (Si-O) to the particle surface. The contrast variation method was applied to reveal the internal structure of the particles. The matchpoints determined with this method were in accordance with those calculated from the mass density of the particles and the atomic composition, as determined with elemental analysis.For a detailed interpretation of the scattering curves, we assumed that the particles were spherosymmetrical and consisted of two concentric layers. With the relation we derived between the radius of gyration and the reciprocal contrast for such a model, it was possible to determine all the parameters characterizing the particle in terms of this model. The model calculations performed using these parameters fitted very well to the experimental intensities for high contrasts. For lower contrasts, the fit was somewhat less good. This is probably due to random fluctuations in the scattering length density within the particle core.The different radii as found by neutron scattering, agreed very well with those determined using other techniques, such as light scattering (static and dynamic) and electron microscopy.     

Crystal structure and triboluminescence of the [Eu(TTA)2(NO3)(TPPO)2] complex

The crystal structure of [Eu(TTA)₂(NO₃)(TPPO)₂] (I) (TTA = thenoyltrifluoroacetone, TPPO = triphenylphosphine oxide) possessing intense triboluminescence was established by X-ray crystallography. The crystals are triclinic, noncentrocymmetrical: a = 11.047(3) Å, b = 11.794(3) Å, c = 12.537(3) Å; α = 102.635 (4)°, β = 102.088(4)°,γ = 117.765(3)°; space group P1, Z = 1. The central Eu(III) atom coordinates two oxygen atoms of two TPPO molecules at distances of 2.271 Å and 2.282 Å, two oxygen atoms of the nitrate group at distances of 2.478 Å and 2.481 Å, four oxygen atoms of two TTA ions at distances of 2.365 Å, 2.381 Å, and 2.363 Å, 2.371 Å (coordination number is 8). The coordination polyhedron of the Eu(III) atom is a distorted dodecahedron. Possible reasons for spectral differences in the Stark structure of photo-and triboluminescence of I are discussed.     

Mechanism of densification in silica glass under pressure as revealed by a bottom-up pairwise effective interaction model

A new short-range pairwise numerical potential for silica is presented. The potential is derived from a single ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulation of molten silica using the force-matching method with the forces being represented numerically by piecewise functions (splines). The AIMD simulation is performed using the Born-Oppenheimer method with the generalized gradient approximation (BLYP) for the XC energy functional. The new effective potential includes a soft-repulsive shoulder to describe the interactions of oxygen ions at short separations. The new potential, despite being short-ranged and derived from single-phase data, exhibits a good transferability to silica crystalline polymorphs and amorphous silica. The importance of the O-O soft-repulsive shoulder interaction on glass densification under cold and shock compressions is assessed from MD simulations of silica glass under room and shock Hugoniot conditions, respectively. Results from these simulations indicate that the appearance of oxygen complexes (primarily pairs) interacting through soft-repulsive shoulder potential occurs at 8-10 GPa, and under cold compression conditions becomes notable at 40 GPa, essentially coinciding with the transition to a Si sixfold coordination state. An analysis of changes in system structure in compressed and shocked states reveals that the O ions interacting through the soft-repulsive shoulder potential in denser states of silica glass may create a mechanical multi-stability under elevated pressures and thus to contribute to the observed anomalous densification.