Inorganic Chemistry, Vol.52, No.2, 950-952, 2013
Li11Nd18Fe4O39-delta Revisited
The structure proposed for Li11Nd18Fe4O39-delta (Chen et al. Inorg. Chem. 2012, 51, 8073) on the basis of diffraction and Mossbauer spectral data is compared to that determined previously for Nd18Li8Fe5O39 (Dutton et al. Inorg. Chem. 2008 47, 11212) using the same techniques. The Mossbauer spectrum reported by Chen et al. has been reinterpreted. The newly refined spectral parameters differ significantly from the published values but are similar to those reported for Nd18Li8Fe5O39. The relative areas of the three components indicate that iron cations occupy the 2a, 8e, and 16i sites in space group Pm (3) over barn, in disagreement with the model determined from neutron diffraction by Chen et al. in which only the 2a and 8e sites are so occupied. The relationship between Li11Nd18Fe4O39-delta and Nd18Li8Fe5O39 is discussed, and it is proposed that the sample prepared by Dutton et al. is a kinetic product whereas the sample prepared by Chen et al. is the thermodynamically preferred product.