Accurate structure models and absolute configuration determination using dynamical effects in continuous-rotation 3D electron diffraction data

Continuous-rotation 3D electron diffraction methods are increasingly popular for the structure analysis of very small organic molecular crystals and crystalline inorganic materials. Dynamical diffraction effects cause non-linear deviations from kinematical intensities that present issues in structure analysis. Here, a method for structure analysis of continuous-rotation 3D electron diffraction data is presented that takes multiple scattering effects into account. Dynamical and kinematical refinements of 12 compounds-ranging from small organic compounds to metal-organic frameworks to inorganic materials-are compared, for which the new approach yields significantly improved models in terms of accuracy and reliability with up to fourfold reduction of the noise level in difference Fourier maps. The intrinsic sensitivity of dynamical diffraction to the absolute structure is also used to assign the handedness of 58 crystals of 9 different chiral compounds, showing that 3D electron diffraction is a reliable tool for the routine determination of absolute structures.

Catalyst sites and active species in the early stages of MTO conversion over cobalt AlPO-18 followed by IR spectroscopy

Reaction-time resolved IR spectroscopy highlights the role of CO and surface –OCH3 in the MTO conversion catalysed by CoAPO-18 with maximised concentration of acidic sites.

SYSU-6, A New 2-D Aluminophosphate Zeolite Layer Precursor

Two-dimensional aluminophosphate is an important precursor of phosphate-based zeolites; a new Sun Yat-sen University No. 6 (SYSU-6) with |Hada|₂[Al₂(HPO₄)(PO₄)₂] has been synthesized in the hydrothermal synthesis with organic structure-directing agent (OSDA) of N,N,3,5-tetramethyladamantan-1-amine. In this paper, SYSU-6 is characterized by single-crystal/powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, transmission electron microscopy, infrared and UV Raman spectroscopy, solid-state ²⁷Al, ³¹P and ¹³C magic angle spinning (MAS) NMR spectra, and elemental analysis. The single-crystal X-ray diffraction structure indicates that SYSU-6 crystallized in the space group P2₁/n, with a = 8.4119(3), b = 36.9876(12), c = 12.5674(3), α = 90°, β = 108.6770(10)°, γ = 90°, V = 3704.3(2) ų, Z = 4, R = 5.12%, for 8515 observed data (I > 2σ(I)). The structure has a new 4,12-ring layer framework topology linked by alternating AlO₄ and PO₄ tetrahedra. The organic molecules reside between the layers and are hydrogen-bonded to the inorganic framework. The new type of layer provides a greater opportunity to construct zeolite with novel topology.