Clusters, transition metal with interstitial atoms

Abstract This chapter reviews the methods that are useful for understanding the structure and bonding in Zintl ions and related bare post-transition element clusters in approximate historical order. After briefly discussing the Zintl-Klemm model the Wade-Mingos rules and related ideas are discussed. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the jellium model and special methods pertaining to bare metal clusters with interstitial atoms. 

This consideration also applies to 8-vertex clusters with interstitial atoms. The most spherical 8-vertex deltahedron, namely the bisdisphenoid (Eig. 1), appears to have too small a cavity for an interstitial transition metal. Plowever, the square antiprism has two fewer edges and can be partially flattened to make a puckered eight-membered ring, which can accommodate a transition metal in the center (Pig. 8). Known clusters of this type include M E8" (M = Cr [98], Mo [98], Nb [99] E = As, Sb n = 2,3 for Cr and Mo = 3 for Nb). The transition metal in such structures can be considered to be eight-coordinate with flattened square antiprismatic coordination. The Eg ring (E = As, Sb) can be considered formally to be an octaanion, isoelectronic with the common form of elemental sulfur, Sg. Thus in M Eg (M = Cr, Mo E = As, Sb), the central transition metal has the formal oxidation state of +6. Similarly in Nb Eg , the central niobium atom has its d formal oxidation state of +5. 

Note that in both interstitial transition metal carbides and the molecular clusters with interstitial atoms, the octahedral metal arrangement changes to trigonal prismatic as the d-electron count increases. That is, octahedral carbides are found for d4 or d5 metals as exemplified by ZrC and NbC and trigonal prismatic carbides are found for d6 metals as in WC. 

Mathematical cluster chemistry/Metal-metal interactions in transition metal clusters with donor ligands/Electron count versus structural arrangement in clusters based on a cubic transition metal core with bridging Main Group elements/Metalloboranes/ Clusters with interstitial atoms from the p-block How do Wade s rules handle them /Diverse naked clusters of the heavy Main Group elements Electronic regularities and analogies... 

Of course, the chemistry of zirconium cluster phases has been well described and reviewed in the literature [1-4]. Apart from a very few examples, mostly in the binary halides, almost all reduced zirconium halides contain octahedra of zirconium atoms centred on an interstitial atom Z. Several possible and experimentally realized Z include H, Be-N, K, Al-P, and the transition metals Mn-Ni. All these compounds have the general formula Ax"[(Zr6Z)Xi2X[J], with a " = alkali or alkaline earth metal cation, X=C1 Br or I, X =inner edge-bridging halide [5], X =outer exo-bonded halide, and 0[Pg.61]

The chemistry of octahedral metal clusters culminates in the center of the Periodic Table with the heavy transition metals Nb, Ta, Mo, W, and Re. There is a plethora of clusters where the M-M bonded core is surrounded (and shielded) by non-metal ligands. When moving to the left of the Periodic Table the decrease in valence electron concentration calls for a stabilization through incorporation of interstitial atoms into the cluster core. Actually, the stabilization of the cluster occurs... 

Table IV lists specific examples of compounds related through this form of dimensional reduction, By far, the majority of these are zirconium chloride and iodide phases, in which case lower main group and even transition metals have been found to incorporate as interstitial atoms. A few analogues are known with hafnium (135), and very recently it has been shown that nitrogen can be substituted for carbon in tungsten chloride clusters adopting the centered trigonal-prismatic geometry (see Fig. 2) (32). It is hoped that a variability similar to that exposed for the octahedral zirconium clusters will be attainable for such trigonal-prismatic cluster phases.

In Figure 3.7, a selection of metal clusters containing interstitial atoms is shown. Examples with interstitial H atoms as well as transition-metal atoms are also known. Addition of an interstitial metal atom is the first step towards extended metal structures. The term interstitial derives from its use in solid-state chemistry where atoms are found in the interstices of metal lattices, e.g., the tetrahedral or octahedral... 

With Ceo, as well as the larger analogs, atoms can be introduced into the internal cavities to form main-group versions of transition-metal clusters containing interstitial atoms. Entities such as main-group atoms like N or a rare gas, molecules tike H2, rare-earth metals and others can be encapsulated. As with external metals, the maximum conductivity occurs for internal metals which are able to transfer three electrons to the radial tiu band of solid C6o-... 

Geometrically, the main group element tends to retain a tetrahedral nearest neighbor environment, whereas the transition metal element tends to retain an octahedral environment. As a consequence, transition metal clusters with more than six metal atoms have a tendency toward ligand loss, leading to the formation of condensed clusters (multiple interstitial metal atoms). This leads eventually to close-packed structures that mimic bulk metal structures (see Polynuclear Organometallic Cluster Complexes). On the... 

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