Cadmium phosphates Cd2(PO4)OH and Cd5(PO4)2(OH)4 crystallizing in mineral structures

Acta Crystallogr E Crystallogr Commun. 2024 Jan 26;80(Pt 2):207-212. doi: 10.1107/S2056989024000793. eCollection 2024 Feb 1.

Abstract

Single crystals of two basic cadmium phosphates, dicadmium orthophosphate hydroxide, Cd2(PO4)OH, and penta-cadmium bis-(orthophosphate) tetra-kis-(hydroxide), Cd5(PO4)2(OH)4, were obtained under hydro-thermal conditions. Cd2(PO4)OH adopts the triplite [(Mn,Fe)2(PO4)F] structure type. Its asymmetric unit comprises two Cd, one P and five O sites, all situated at the general Wyckoff position 8 f of space group I2/a; two of the O atoms are positionally disordered over two sites, and the H atom could not be localized. Disregarding the disorder, distorted [CdO6] polyhedra form a tri-periodic network by edge-sharing with neighbouring [CdO6] units and by vertex-sharing with [PO4] units. The site associated with the OH group is coordinated by four Cd atoms in a distorted tetra-hedral manner forming 1 [(OH)Cd4/2] chains parallel to [001]. The oxygen environment around the OH site suggests multiple acceptor atoms for possible O-H⋯O hydrogen-bonding inter-actions and is the putative reason for the disorder. Cd5(PO4)2(OH)4 adopts the arsenoclasite [Mn5(AsO4)2(OH)4] structure type. Its asymmetric unit comprises five Cd, two P, and twelve O sites all located at the general Wyckoff position 4 a of space group P212121; the H atoms could not be localized. The crystal structure of Cd5(PO4)2(OH)4 can be subdivided into two main sub-units. One consists of three edge-sharing [CdO6] octa-hedra, and the other of two edge- and vertex-sharing [CdO6] octa-hedra. Each sub-unit forms corrugated ribbons extending parallel to [100]. The two types of ribbons are linked into the tri-periodic arrangement through vertex-sharing and through common [PO4] tetra-hedra. Qu-anti-tative structure comparisons are made with isotypic M 5(XO4)2(OH)4 crystal structures (M = Cd, Mn, Co; X = P, As, V).

Keywords: arsenoclasite; cadmium phosphate(V); crystal structure; isotypism; structure comparison; triplite.