A (27)Al MAS NMR study of a sol-gel produced alumina: Identification of the NMR parameters of the theta-Al(2)O(3) transition alumina phase

²⁷Al MAS NMR has been used to study a sol–gel prepared alumina annealed at various temperatures. Two-field simulation of the sample heated to 1200 °C confirmed the presence of corundum, as suggested by XRD, and also the presence of nanocrystalline θ-Al₂O₃. ²⁷Al MAS NMR chemical shifts, quadrupolar coupling constants and asymmetry parameters are reported for the tetrahedral and octahedral aluminium sites within θ-Al₂O₃.     

Effects of T2-relaxation in MAS NMR spectra of the satellite transitions for quadrupolar nuclei: a 27Al MAS and single-crystal NMR study of alum KAl(SO4)2.12H2O

Asymmetries in the manifold of spinning sidebands (ssbs) from the satellite transitions have been observed in variable-temperature 27Al MAS NMR spectra of alum (KAl(SO4)2.12H2O), recorded in the temperature range from -76 to 92 degrees C. The asymmetries decrease with increasing temperature and reflect the fact that the ssbs exhibit systematically different linewidths for different spectral regions of the manifold. From spin-echo 27Al NMR experiments on a single-crystal of alum, it is demonstrated that these variations in linewidth originate from differences in transverse (T2) relaxation times for the two inner (m=1/2<-->m=3/2 and m=-1/2<-->m=-3/2) and correspondingly for the two outer (m=3/2<-->m=5/2 and m=-3/2<-->m=-5/2) satellite transitions. T2 relaxation times in the range 0.5-3.5 ms are observed for the individual satellite transitions at -50 degrees C and 7.05 T, whereas the corresponding T1 relaxation times, determined from similar saturation-recovery 27Al NMR experiments, are almost constant (T1=0.07-0.10 s) for the individual satellite transitions. The variation in T2 values for the individual 27Al satellite transitions for alum is justified by a simple theoretical approach which considers the cross-correlation of the local fluctuating fields from the quadrupolar coupling and the heteronuclear (27Al-1H) dipolar interaction on the T2 relaxation times for the individual transitions. This approach and the observed differences in T2 values indicate that a single random motional process modulates both the quadrupolar and heteronuclear dipolar interactions for 27Al in alum at low temperatures.     

Analysis of H NMR spectra of water molecules on the surface of nano-silica material MCM-41: Deconvolution of the signal into a Lorentzian and a powder pattern line shapes

Water ²H NMR signal on the surface of nano-silica material MCM-41 consists of two overlapping resonances. The ²H water spectrum shows a superposition of a Lorentzian line shape and the familiar NMR powder pattern line shape, indicating the existence of two spin components. Exchange occurs between these two groups. Decomposition of the two signals is a crucial starting point to study the exchange process. In this article we have determined these spin component populations along with other important parameters for the ²H water NMR signal over a temperature range between 223 K and 343 K.