Crystal chemical characterization of mullite-type aluminum borate compounds

Al-rich aluminum borates were prepared by different synthesis routes using various Al/B ratios, characterized by diffraction methods, spectroscopy and prompt gamma activation analysis. The 11B NMR data show a small amount of BO4 species in all samples. The chemical analysis indicates a trend in the Al/B ratio instead of a fixed composition. Both methods indicate a solid solution Al5−xB1+xO9 where Al is substituted by B in the range of 1–3%.

The structure of B-rich Al4B2O9 (C2/m, a=1488 pm, b=553 pm, c=1502 pm, ß=90.6°), was re-investigated by electron diffraction methods, showing that structural details vary within a crystallite. In most of the domains the atoms are orderly distributed, showing no signal for the postulated channel oxygen atom O5. The absence of O5 is supported by density functional theory calculations. Other domains show a probable disordered configuration of O5 and O10, indicated by diffuse scattering along the b direction.