Pressure-induced structural transformations of the Zintl phase sodium silicide

The high-pressure behaviour of NaSi has been studied using Raman spectroscopy and angle-dispersive synchrotron X-ray diffraction to observe the onset of structural phase transformations and potential oligomerisation into anionic Si nanoclusters with extended dimensionality. Our studies reveal a first structural transformation occurring at 8–10 GPa, followed by irreversible amorphisation above 15 GPa, suggesting the formation of Si–Si bonds with oxidation of the Si⁻ species and reduction of Na⁺ to metallic sodium. We have combined our experimental studies with DFT calculations to assist in the analysis of the structural behaviour of NaSi at high pressure.     

Investigation of phase transformations in thermal processing of phosphate rock

The reaction mechanism of the hydrothermal sintering processing of hydroxyfluorapatite (HFA) was studied. Samples from an industrial rotary kiln and laboratory-made samples were investigated by thermal, X-ray and chemical analysis. It was found that HFA decomposes by a solid-solid reaction with Ca-Mg-phosphates and by interaction with fused clinker. Apatite decomposition is not accompanied by fluorine evaporation; it merely creates the main precondition for fluorine evolution from clinker.

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Zusammenfassung Es wurde der Reaktionsmechanismus des hydrothermischen Sinterverfahrens von Hydroxyfluorapatit (HFA) untersucht. Proben aus einem Industriedrehofen und aus dem Labor wurden mittels Thermo-, röntgenographischer und chemischer Analyse untersucht. Es wurde gefunden, da\ HFA durch eine Feststoffreaktion mit Ca-Mg-Phosphaten und mittels einer Wechselwirkung mit geschmolzener Schlacke zerfÄllt. Die Zersetzung von Apatit wird von keiner Abdampfung von Fluor begleitet; es schafft lediglich die Hauptvoraussetzung für die Freisetzung von Fluor aus Schlacke.

     

Specifics of the thermal transformations of the wurtzite phase of boron nitride

The kinetics of the transformation of the BN wurtzite phase to the graphite modification was studied at normal pressure and 600–970°C. At these temperatures and certain thermal treatment durations, along with the formation of the graphite phase, the reverse transition from g-BN to w-BN occurs, a behavior indicative of a higher thermodynamics stability of the wurtzite phase.     

Negative thermal expansion emerging upon structural phase transition in ZrV2O7 and HfV2O7

ZrV(2)O(7) and HfV(2)O(7), which show negative thermal expansion (NTE) in the high-temperature phase, were investigated using X-ray diffraction and heat capacity calorimetry. Two sharp anomalies due to successive phase transitions were observed in the temperature dependence of heat capacity at 345.5 K and 373.4 K for ZrV(2)O(7) and 341.8 K and 370.3 K for HfV(2)O(7). The smallness of their combined entropies of transition suggested that the phase transitions are of displacive type. Effective phonon densities of states (DOS) described by a simple model, and mode-Grüneisen parameters of the low-temperature phase were obtained through the spectrum analyses of heat capacities of ZrV(2)O(7) and HfV(2)O(7). Their effective phonon DOS's show the three features common to NTE compounds: low-energy phonon mode, high-energy phonon mode, and a wide phonon gap in between. The mode-Grüneisen parameter of low-energy modes corresponding to translational and librational vibrations of the constituent polyhedra is negative but with a small absolute value due to the distortion of V(2)O(7) group in the low-temperature phase, resulting in positive thermal expansion. It is revealed that the release of the structural distortion upon the successive phase transitions with large volume increase leads to the NTE of ZrV(2)O(7) and HfV(2)O(7) in the high-temperature phase.     

Charge-transfer phase transition and zero thermal expansion in caesium manganese hexacyanoferrates

A series of caesium manganese hexacyanoferrates is prepared; Cs(I)(1.78)Mn(II)[Fe(II)(CN)6]0.78[Fe(III)(CN)6](0.22) (1), Cs(I)(1.57)Mn(II)[Fe(II)(CN)6]0.57[Fe(III)(CN)6](0.43) (2), Cs(I)(1.51)Mn(II)[Fe(II)(CN)6]0.51[Fe(III)(CN)6](0.49) (3), and Cs(I)(0.94)Mn(II)[Fe(II)(CN)6]0.21[Fe(III)(CN)6](0.70).0.8H2O (4). 1-3 show charge-transfer phase transitions between the high-temperature (HT) and low-temperature (LT) phases with transition temperatures (T(1/2 downward arrow), T(1/2 upward arrow)) of (207 K, 225 K) (1), (190 K, 231 K) (2), and (175 K, 233 K) (3) at a cooling and warming rates of 0.5 K min(-1). Variable temperature IR spectra indicate that the valence states of the LT phases of 1-3 are Cs(I)(1.78)Mn(II)(0.78)Mn(III)(0.22)[Fe(II)(CN)6], Cs(I)(1.57)Mn(II)(0.57)Mn(III)(0.43)[Fe(II)(CN)6], and Cs(I)(1.51)Mn(II)(0.51)Mn(III)(0.49) [Fe(II)(CN)6], respectively. The XRD measurements for 1-3 show that crystal structures of the HT and LT phases are cubic structures (Fm3[combining macron]m), but the lattice constants decrease from the HT phase to the LT phase; a = 10.5446(17) --> 10.4280(7) A (1), 10.5589(17) --> 10.3421(24) A (2), and 10.5627(11) --> 10.3268(23) A (3). The magnetization vs. temperature curves and the magnetization vs. external magnetic field curves show that the LT phases are ferromagnetic with Curie temperatures of 4.3 (1), 5.0 (2), and 5.6 K (3). At a cooling rate of -0.5 K min(-1), 4 does not show the charge-transfer phase transition, but does show a behavior of zero thermal expansion with a thermal expansivity of +0.2 x 10(-6) K(-1) throughout the temperature range 300 and 20 K.     

The phase transformations and thermal expansion of the solid electrolyte Cu3BiS3 between 25 and 300°C

Phase transformations and thermal expansion of Cu₃BiS₃ were studied up to 300°C using heated Weissenberg and Guinier cameras. At 118.5°C a transformation takes place from the P2₁2₁2₁ to a modulated Pn2₁a or Pnma polymorph. The modulation changes continuously, with decreasing intensities of X-ray satellites, from ～3.14c at 118.5°C toward ～2c at 190°C. At 191°C an unmodulated, high Pnma polymorph is formed. The lattice parameters are a = 7.705, b = 10.400, and c = 6.720 Å at room temperature. They expand only slightly in the low form; a and c contract in the intermediate form, and c contracts further in the high form. The unit cell volume remains nearly constant between 25 and 300°C. The observed phenomena result from redistributions of copper atoms over available structural sites and, at above ～135°C, from the conversion of these atoms from a stationary to a mobile state.     

The structure, thermal properties and phase transformations of the cubic polymorph of magnesium tetrahydroborate

The structure of the cubic polymorph of magnesium tetrahydroborate (γ-Mg(BH(4))(2)) has been determined in space group Ia3[combining macron]d from a structural database of the isoelectronic compound SiO(2); this has been corroborated by DFT calculations. The structure is found to concur with that recently determined by Filinchuk et al. (Y. Filinchuk, B. Richter, T. R. Jensen, V. Dmitriev, D. Chernyshov and H. Hagemann, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 2011, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201100675). The phase transformations and subsequent decomposition of γ-Mg(BH(4))(2) on heating have been ascertained from variable-temperature synchrotron X-ray diffraction data combined with thermogravimetric and mass spectrometry measurements. At ～160 °C, conversion to a disordered variant of the β-Mg(BH(4))(2) phase (denoted as β') is observed along with a further unidentified polymorph. There is evidence of amorphous phases during decomposition but there is no direct crystallographic indication of the existence of Mg(B(12)H(12)) or other intermediate Mg-B-H compounds. MgH(2) and finally Mg are observed in the X-ray diffraction data after decomposition.     

Energetics of phase transformations in polyethylene

The molecular mechanisms involved in the orthorhombic-to-monoclinic phase transformation in polyethylene were investigated by the computer simulation of a structure–energy map based on empirically justified intermolecular potential functions. Stable packing structures for the orthorhombic and monoclinic form were isolated as relative minima, cohesive energies were determined from the energy minima, specific chain motions involved in the transformation were identified by the minimum energy path connecting the packing minima, and the activation energy for the transformation was determined from the energy barrier along the minimum energy transformation path. The packing structure parameters predicted from the energy map were in excellent agreement with unit cell dimensions observed near 0°K. The activation energy predicted for the transformation is relatively low (～0.5 kcal/mole of ethylene at 0°K and 0.25 kcal/mole of ethylene near the melting point, 411°K). Monoclinic packing was predicted to be slightly more stable than orthorhombic. Since this result is inconsistent with a large body of observations, we propose that the intramolecular energy of chain folds plays a dominant role in establishing chain-packing geometry. The inclusion of fold-transition energetics could give rise to transformation mechanisms which differ in details from those proposed in this work.     

On the theory of structural transformations in polar colloids

Structural transformations in the ensemble of particles with permanent intrinsic dipole moment are theoretically studied. In addition to dipole-dipole component, interparticle potential includes central attractive interaction. Such systems belong to ferrocolloids (ferrofluids) whose particle central molecular interaction is not completely screened by the protective surface layers, to polar molecular liquids, and other similar media. Main attention is focused on the analysis of chain-dense globule transitions in particle ensembles. The obtained results demonstrate that even weak central interaction between particles can induce such a transition. The performed studies explain why, in most of the known computer experiments with polar particles, the formation of dense bulk phases is observed only at the presence of central interparticle attraction and only dipole-dipole interaction results in the formation of linear chain structures, but not bulk phases.     

Effects of structural transformations in magnetic emulsions

Structural transformations and relevant changes in the magnetic and optical properties of magnetosensitive emulsions based on magnetic fluids are experimentally studied. Peculiarities of the changes in the magnetic susceptibility of emulsions associated with the deformation of their microdroplets and the effect of phase inversion (the transformation of dispersions of magnetic droplets in nonmagnetic media into dispersions of nonmagnetic droplets in magnetic fluids) are established. Optical effects occurring in magnetic emulsions under the combined action of a shear flow and a magnetic field are studied. It is concluded that optically active composition media may be developed on the basis of magnetic fluids.     

Classification of physico-chemical transformations in thermal analysis

In the present classification the different types of physicochemical transformations are dealt with which may be useful in studying different substances by the methods of thermal analysis. Equations were derived for describing the correlation between the thermodynamic characteristics and the parameters of the differential thermal analytical (DTA) peaks for two classes of physicochemical transformations.All experiments were conducted on DTA-4 instruments constructed in the Baykov Institute of Metallurgy, the USSR Academy of Sciences.

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Silver(I) pyrophosphonates: structural, photoluminescent and thermal expansion studies

The solvothermal reactions of silver(I) salts with mono-organophosphonic acids, i.e. 3-thienylphosphonic acid (3-TPA), phenylphosphonic acid (PPA), α-naphthylphosphonic acid (α-NPA) and cyclohexylphosphonic acid (CPA), yield four new silver(I) pyrophosphonates, namely: [Ag(2)(ptp)] (1), [Ag(2)(ppp)] (2), [Ag(3)(CH(3)CN)(pnp)(pnpH)] (3), and [Ag(3)(pcp)(pcpH)] (4) [ptp(2-) = pyro-3-thienylphosphonate, ppp(2-) = pyrophenylphosphonate, pnp(2-) = pyro-α-naphthylphosphonate, pcp(2-) = pyrocyclohexylphosphoante]. In all cases, the pyrophosphonate ligands are generated in situ from their relative mono-organophosphonic acids, mediated by silver(I) ions. Single crystal structural determinations reveal that compounds 1 and 2 display two-dimensional layer architectures, while 3 and 4 show one-dimensional chain structures. Structure 1 can be best described as a layer made up of Ag(4)O(P)(6) clusters linked by O-P-O units and AgAg contacts, with the organic groups grafted on the two sides of the inorganic layer. A similar layer structure is found in 2 except that the AgAg interactions are absent. Compound 3 shows a chain structure where the silver ions are bridged by the phosphonate oxygen atoms forming an infinite Ag-O(P) chain which is decorated by the pyrophosphonate ligand and CH(3)CN. Compound 4 has another type of chain structure made up of Ag-O(P) with extensive Ag···Ag argentophilic interactions. Solid state photoluminescent properties and thermal expansion behaviors are also investigated.     

On the thermal expansion of molecules

Experimental results for a variety of molecules have shown that their bond lengths expand appreciably when the molecules are heated, as expected from the asymmetric Morse-like potentials characterizing the bonds. However, in a series of papers on structures determined by gas-phase electron diffraction, Giricheva et al. claimed that, for very hot MX₃ molecules, effects of out-of-plane vibrations cancel the thermal expansion of the M–X bonds. This is incorrect. Although the computations to support their claim were correct as far as they went, the authors neglected the effects of asymmetric vibrational modes and centrifugal stretches of the bonds. In the present report, we show that quantum chemical computations for LaI₃ reveal the crucial roles played by the terms neglected by Giricheva et al., which terms are responsible for thermal bond stretches of approximately 0.023 Å at 1142 K. In addition, because the iodine atoms in LaI₃ are further apart in the mean structure than the sum of their Pauling van der Waals radii, the geminal nonbonded interactions are attractive. This accounts for the fact that the Morse asymmetry constant for the symmetric stretch mode is smaller than that for the asymmetric stretch. It also helps to explain the very large amplitude of the out-of-plane puckering mode, which tends to decrease the La–I bond length during the puckering trajectory.     

Pressure-induced phase transformations in LiAlH4

The pressure-induced phase transformations in pure LiAlH4 have been studied using in situ Raman spectroscopy up to 7 GPa. The analyses of Raman spectra reveal a phase transition at approximately 3 GPa from the ambient pressure monoclinic alpha-LiAlH4 phase (P2(1)/c) to a high pressure phase (beta-LiAlH4, reported recently to be monoclinic with space group I4(1)/b) having a distorted [AlH4]- tetrahedron. The Al-H stretching mode softens and shifts dramatically to lower frequencies beyond the phase transformation pressure. The high pressure beta-LiAlH4 phase was pressure quenchable and can be recovered at lower pressures ( approximately 1.2 GPa). The Al-H stretching mode in the quenched state further shifts to lower frequencies, suggesting a weakening of the Al-H bond.     

Thermal transformations of divinyl sulfone in the gas phase

Conclusions The main products of the gas-phase pyrolysis (580–600°) of divinyl sulfone are SO₂, acetylene, and ethylene; butadiene, benzene, toluene, isomeric xylenes, styrene, and benzothiophene are also formed in smaller amounts. In an H₂S atmosphere the pyrolysis of divinyl sulfone is apparently accompanied by a partial reduction of the latter to divinyl sulfoxide.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 4, pp. 931–932, April, 1983.