Isolated zirconium centres captured from aqueous solution: the structure of zirconium mandelate revealed from NMR crystallography.

Zirconium tetramandelate (2-hydroxy-2-phenylacetate) has been used for selective gravimetric analysis of zirconium for over 70 years. Herein its crystal structure is reported from synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction and 13C solid-state NMR. The complex is a rare example of isolated zirconium cations, rather than the clusters prevalent in aqueous solutions.