Lead apatites: structural variations among Pb5(BO4)3Cl with B = P (pyromorphite), As (mimetite) and V (vanadinite).

The crystal structure of four Pb apatite samples, Pb5(BO4)3Cl, was refined with synchrotron high-resolution powder X-ray diffraction data, Rietveld refinements, space group P63/m and Z = 2. For this isotypic series, B = P5+ is pyromorphite, B = As5+ is mimetite and B = V5+ is vanadinite. The ionic radius for As5+ (0.355 Å) is similar to that of V5+ (0.335 Å), and this is twice as large as that for P5+ (0.170 Å). However, the c unit-cell parameter for mimetite is surprisingly different from that of vanadinite, although their unit-cell volumes, V, are almost equal to each other. No explanation was available for this peculiar c-axis value for mimetite. Structural parameters such as average 〈B-O〉 [4], 〈Pb1-O9〉 [9] and 〈Pb2-O6Cl2〉 [8] distances increase linearly with V (the coordination numbers for the cations are given in square brackets). Mimetite has a short Pb2-O1 distance, so the O1 oxygen atom interacts with the 6s2 lone-pair electrons of the Pb2+ cation that causes the Cl-Cl distance (= c/2) to increase to the largest value in the series because of repulsion, which causes the c-axis to increase anomalously. Although Pb apatite minerals occur naturally in ore deposits, they are also formed as scaly deposits in lead water pipes that give rise to lead in tap water, as was found recently in Flint, Michigan, USA. It is important to identify Pb-containing phases in water-pipe deposits.

Two cubic phases in kimzeyite garnet from the type locality Magnet Cove, Arkansas.

The crystal structure of an optically anisotropic kimzeyite garnet from Magnet Cove, Arkansas, USA, where it was first discovered, was refined with the Rietveld method, cubic space group, Ia\overline 3 d, and monochromatic [λ = 0.41422 (2) Å] synchrotron high-resolution powder X-ray diffraction (HRPXRD) data. The Rietveld refinement reduced χ2 and overall R(F2) values are 1.840 and 0.0647, respectively. The sample, with the general garnet formula [8]X3[6]Y2[4]Z3[4]O12, contains an intergrowth of two cubic phases that occur initially as oscillatory growth zoning, and patchy intergrowths arise later from fluid-enhanced dissolution and re-precipitation. The two compositions obtained with electron-probe microanalyses (EPMA) are Ca3.00(Zr1.31Ti4+0.46Fe3+0.22Mn3+0.01)∑2[Al0.76Fe3+1.01Si1.23]∑3O12 for phase 1a and Ca2.99(Zr1.48Ti4+0.37Fe3+0.15)∑2[Al0.87Fe3+0.98Si1.15]∑3O12 for phase 1b. The weight percentage, unit-cell parameter (Å), distances (Å), and site occupancy factors (s.o.f.s) for phase 1a are as follows: 42.6 (2)%, a = 12.46553 (3) Å, average 〈X-O〉 = 2.482, Y-O = 2.059 (2), Z-O = 1.761 (2) Å, Ca (X s.o.f.) = 0.960 (4), Zr (Y s.o.f.) = 0.809 (3), and Fe (Z s.o.f.) = 0.623 (2). The corresponding values for phase 1b are 57.4 (2)%, a = 12.47691 (2) Å, average 〈X-O〉 = 2.482, Y-O = 2.062 (1), Z-O = 1.762 (1) Å, Ca (X s.o.f.) = 0.957 (3), Zr (Y s.o.f.) = 0.828 (2) and Fe (Z s.o.f.) = 0.617 (2). The main structural differences between the two phases are in the unit-cell parameter, Δa = 0.01138 Å, Y(s.o.f.), and Y-O distance. Structural mismatch between the two cubic phases in a crystal gives rise to strain-induced optical anisotropy.

Quartz: structural and thermodynamic analyses across the α ↔ ß transition with origin of negative thermal expansion (NTE) in ß quartz and calcite.

The temperature variation, T, of the crystal structure of quartz, SiO2, from 298 to 1235 K was obtained with synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction data and Rietveld structure refinements. The polymorphic transformation from P3221 (low-T, α quartz) to P6222 (high-T, ß quartz) occurs at a transition temperature, Ttr = 847 K. The T variations of spontaneous strains and several structural parameters are fitted to an order parameter, Q, using Landau theory. The change in Si atom coordinate, Six, gives Ttr - Tc = 0.49 K, which indicates an α ↔ ß transition that is weakly first order and nearly tricritical in character (Q(4) ∝ T). Strains give higher Ttr - Tc values (≃ 7 K). Other fitted parameters are the oxygen Oz coordinate, Si-Si distance, Si-O-Si and ϕ angles, and intensity of the (111) reflection, I111. In α quartz, the Si-Si distance increases with T because of cation repulsion, so the Si-O-Si angle increases (and ϕ decreases) and causes the thermal expansion of the framework structure that consists of corner-sharing distorted rigid SiO4 tetrahedra. The Si-Si distances contract with T and cause negative thermal expansion (NTE) in ß quartz because of increasing thermal librations of the O atom in the Si-O-Si linkage that occur nearly perpendicular to the Si-Si contraction. In calcite, CaCO3, the short Ca-Ca distance expands with T, but the next-nearest Ca-Ca distance, which is of equal length to the a axis, contracts with T and causes NTE along the a axis. The thermal librations of the atoms in the rigid CO3 group increase with T along the c axis.

A dedicated powder diffraction beamline at the advanced photon source: commissioning and early operational results.

A new dedicated high-resolution high-throughput powder diffraction beamline has been built, fully commissioned, and opened to general users at the Advanced Photon Source. The optical design and commissioning results are presented. Beamline performance was examined using a mixture of the NIST Si and Al(2)O(3) standard reference materials, as well as the LaB6 line-shape standard. Instrumental resolution as high as 1.7 x 10(-4) (DeltaQQ) was observed.

A twelve-analyzer detector system for high-resolution powder diffraction.

A dedicated high-resolution high-throughput X-ray powder diffraction beamline has been constructed at the Advanced Photon Source (APS). In order to achieve the goals of both high resolution and high throughput in a powder instrument, a multi-analyzer detector system is required. The design and performance of the 12-analyzer detector system installed on the powder diffractometer at the 11-BM beamline of APS are presented.

Network rigidity in GeSe2 glass at high pressure.

Acoustic measurements using synchrotron radiation have been performed on glassy GeSe2 up to pressures of 9.6 GPa. A minimum observed in the shear-wave velocity, associated anomalous behavior in Poisson's ratio, and discontinuities in elastic moduli at 4 GPa are indicative of a gradual structural transition in the glass. This is attributed to a network rigidity minimum originating from a competition between two densification mechanisms. At pressures up to 3 GPa, a conversion from edge- to corner-sharing tetrahedra results in a more flexible network. This is contrasted by a gradual increase in coordination number with pressure, which leads to an overall stiffening of the glass.

The structure of ferrihydrite, a nanocrystalline material.

Despite the ubiquity of ferrihydrite in natural sediments and its importance as an industrial sorbent, the nanocrystallinity of this iron oxyhydroxide has hampered accurate structure determination by traditional methods that rely on long-range order. We uncovered the atomic arrangement by real-space modeling of the pair distribution function (PDF) derived from direct Fourier transformation of the total x-ray scattering. The PDF for ferrihydrite synthesized with the use of different routes is consistent with a single phase (hexagonal space group P6(3)mc; a = approximately 5.95 angstroms, c = approximately 9.06 angstroms). In its ideal form, this structure contains 20% tetrahedrally and 80% octahedrally coordinated iron and has a basic structural motif closely related to the Baker-Figgis delta-Keggin cluster. Real-space fitting indicates structural relaxation with decreasing particle size and also suggests that second-order effects such as internal strain, stacking faults, and particle shape contribute to the PDFs.

Quantitative high-pressure pair distribution function analysis.

The collection of scattering data at high pressure and temperature is now relatively straightforward thanks to developments at high-brightness synchrotron radiation facilities. Reliable data from powders, that are suitable for structure determination and Rietveld refinement, are routinely collected up to about 30 GPa in either a large-volume high-pressure apparatus or diamond anvil cell. In those cases where the total elastic scattering is of interest, as it is in the case of nano-crystalline and glassy materials, technical developments, including the use of focused high-energy X-rays (>80 keV), are advantageous. Recently completed experiments on nano-crystalline materials at the 1-ID beamline at the Advanced Photon Source suggest that quantitative data, suitable for pair distribution function analysis, can be obtained.