Michel B. Johnson

Spin Waves and Quantum Criticality in the Frustrated XY Pyrochlore Antiferromagnet Er2Ti2O7

We report detailed measurements of the low temperature magnetic phase diagram of Er2Ti2O7. Heat capacity and time-of-flight neutron scattering studies of single crystals reveal unconventional low-energy states. Er3+ magnetic ions reside on a pyrochlore lattice in Er2Ti2O7, where local XY anisotropy and antiferromagnetic interactions give rise to a unique frustrated system. In zero field, the ground state exhibits coexisting short and long-range order, accompanied by soft collective spin excitations previously believed to be absent. The application of finite magnetic fields tunes the ground state continuously through a landscape of noncollinear phases, divided by a zero temperature phase transition at micro{0}H{c} approximately 1.5 T. The characteristic energy scale for spin fluctuations is seen to vanish at the critical point, as expected for a second order quantum phase transition driven by quantum fluctuations.

3D chemically cross-linked single-walled carbon nanotube buckypapers

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) covalently modified with OH functional groups were assembled into buckypapers through solvent dispersion and vacuum filtration. These SWCNT-OH buckypaper sheets were subsequently crosslinked by wetting with bifunctional linkers followed by hot compression causing reaction between the functional groups of the reagent and OH functional groups on the side-walls of SWCNTs to create three-dimensional (3D) covalently cross-linked buckypapers. Cross-linking also was performed using SWCNTs encapsulated with a functionalized polymer wrapping in a core–shell structure, where OH or/and NH2 groups are available on the surface of the polymeric shell for reaction. The 3D cross-linked SWCNT buckypapers retain the porous character typical of buckypaper, and were characterized for their tensile properties and thermal and electrical conductivities. Several cross-linking approaches dramatically improved the mechanical properties. The strongest and stiffest papers (32 MPa, E = 3.1 GPa), which approach 10× stronger and stiffer than the pristine non-crosslinked buckypaper, were obtained at the expense of a loss of electrical conductivity. In other cases, such as cross-linking using a high-performance epoxy resin monomer, improvements in strength and stiffness of ∼5× were obtained while retaining electrical and thermal conductivity. Therefore, the optimal cross-linking approach would be determined by the desired, multifunctional properties. Additionally, the approach can be used in the preparation buckypaper composites and it is demonstrated that cross-linking using a multifunctional epoxy resin prior to impregnation with the same epoxy resin results in substantially better mechanical properties in comparison to just epoxy-impregnation of pristine buckypaper.

Determination of Phase Stability of Elemental Boron

Boron is an important element, used in applications from superhard materials to superconductors. Boron exists in several forms (allotropes) and, surprisingly, it was not known which form (α or β) is stable at ambient conditions. Through experiment, we quantify the relative stability of α-boron and β-boron as a function of temperature. The ground-state energies of α-boron and β-boron are nearly identical. For all temperatures up to 2000 K, the complicated β-boron structure is more stable than the simpler α-boron structure at ambient pressure. Below 1000 K, β-boron is entropically stabilized with respect to α-boron owing to its partially occupied sites, whereas at higher temperatures β-boron is enthalpically stabilized with respect to α-boron. We show that α-boron only becomes stable on application of pressure.

Synthesis, characterization, and thermodynamics of arsenates forming in the Ca-Fe(III)-As(V)-NO3 system: Implications for the stability of Ca-Fe arsenates

Abstract Arseniosiderite and yukonite are among the important arsenate minerals occurring as secondary alteration products in relation to the oxidation of arsenopyrite and arsenian pyrite and as discrete grains in some gold ores, mine tailings, and contaminated soils. Characteristics of these Ca-Fe arsenate species are not well known and our understanding of the conditions promoting their formation and dissolution is limited. Long- and short-range structural characteristics and thermodynamic properties of the Ca-Fe arsenates forming in the Ca-Fe(III)-As(V)-NO3 system were determined to better predict the mineralogical transformations taking place in neutralized sludge and tailings environments, and their influence on arsenic mobilization. Yukonite and arseniosiderite readily form from solutions with highly variable compositions at a wide pH range from slightly acidic to alkaline conditions. Calcium concentrations corresponding to molar Ca/(Ca+Fe+As) ratios as low as 0.1 appear to be adequate for their formation. Our experimental results confirm observations in natural settings and mine tailings where scorodite is progressively replaced by yukonite and arseniosiderite. The initial amorphous precipitates made of small oligomeric units of edge-sharing FeO6 octahedra with bridging arsenate evolve to yukonite through the establishment of corner linkages between the FeO6 chains. Yukonite represents a nanocrystalline precursor and Ca-deficient variety of arseniosiderite. Formation of arseniosiderite is kinetically controlled with faster development of crystallinity at neutral to slightly acidic pH and slower kinetics under alkaline conditions. Calorimetric measurements provided an enthalpy of formation value of -1950.3 ± 3.1 kJ/mol and standard entropy of 237.4 ± 4.4 J/(mol·K) for arseniosiderite [with composition Ca0.663Fe1.093(AsO4)(OH)1.605·0.827H2O], the corresponding Gibbs free energy of formation is -1733 ± 3.4 kJ/mol. A rough estimate of the thermodynamic properties of yukonite is also provided. Arseniosiderite is a stable arsenate between pH 3.5 and 7.5 in solutions saturated with respect to soluble Ca minerals such as calcite, gypsum, anorthite, or Ca-montmorillonite. Arsenic release from mine wastes and contaminated soils can be effectively controlled by arseniosiderite and the conditions promoting its formation such as lime-treatment leading to gypsum saturation in ferric arsenate solutions would prove to be desirable for stabilizing arsenic in the form of arseniosiderite in mine wastes.

Physicochemical properties of imidazo-pyridine protic ionic liquids

A new class of protic ionic liquids (PILs) were prepared by reacting imidazo-[1,2a]-pyridine (ImPr) with benzene-1,2-dithiol (BDT), oxalic acid (Ox), phthalic acid (Phth), pimelic acid (Pim), and sulfuric acid. [ImPr][HSO4] was determined to be the most thermally stable PIL with a decomposition temperature of 326 °C and could potentially be used as an electrolyte in fuel cells and lithium ion batteries. X-ray crystallography on oxidized [ImPr][BDT] indicated the formation of the first reported disulfide PIL. [ImPr][Pim] and [ImPr][Phth] showed fragile behaviour. A Walden plot indicated ionic behaviour close to ideal for [ImPr][Phth].

Magnetic phase transitions and magnetic entropy in the XY antiferromagnetic pyrochlores (Er1−xYx)2Ti2O7

We present the results of experimental determination of the heat capacity of the pyrochlore Er2Ti2O7 as a function of temperature (0.35–300 K) and magnetic field (up to 9 T), and for magnetically diluted solid solutions of the general formula (Er1−xYx)2Ti2O7 (x≤0.471). On either doping or increase of magnetic field, or both, the Néel temperature first shifts to lower temperature until a critical point above which there is no well-defined transition but a Schottky-like anomaly associated with the splitting of the ground state Kramers doublet. By taking into account details of the lattice contribution to the heat capacity, we accurately isolate the magnetic contribution to the heat capacity and hence to the entropy. For pure Er2Ti2O7 and for (Er1−xYx)2Ti2O7, the magnetic entropy as a function of temperature evolves with two plateaus: the first at Rln⁡2, and the other at Rln⁡16. When a very high magnetic field is applied, the first plateau is washed out. The influence of dilution at low values is similar to the increase of magnetic field, as we show by examination of the critical temperature versus critical field curve in reduced terms.

Influence of guest loading on thermal properties of NaxSi136 clathrates

Thermal properties of a series of type II clathrates of the formula NaxSi136 with 0 < x < 24 and Na guests occupying the Si cages have been investigated over the temperature range from 2 to 300 K. Heat capacity and thermal conductivity results show that the structure is remarkably responsive to the loading of Na guests. The response is phononic: the host lattice expands in a non-monotonic way, and first stiffens, then relaxes at low loading into the larger Si28 cages (x < 9), then stiffens again as the Na concentration increases further. The response is also electronic, through changes in electronic properties as additional Na is loaded into the smaller Si20 cages at high loading (x > 9). In total, the influence of the guest loading illustrates the complexities of structure-property relations in a guest-host system.

Thermodynamics and crystal chemistry of rhomboclase, (H5O2)Fe(SO4)2·2H2O, and the phase (H3O)Fe(SO4)2 and implications for acid mine drainage

Abstract The system Fe2O3-SO3-H2O contains the most important minerals of acid mine drainage (AMD), iron oxides, and iron sulfates. For geochemical modeling of the AMD systems, reliable thermodynamic data for these phases are needed. In this work, we have determined thermodynamic data for the most acidic sulfates rhomboclase [(H5O2)Fe(SO4)2⋅2H2O or (H3O)Fe(SO4)2⋅3H2O] and the phase (H3O)Fe(SO4)2. The actual compositions of the studied phases are (H3O)1.34Fe(SO4)2.17(H2O)3.06 (molecular mass of 344.919 g/mol) and (H3O)1.34Fe(SO4)2.17 (289.792 g/mol). Structural details for both phases were refined from synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction data. Enthalpies of formation were determined by acid-solution calorimetry. Low-temperature heat capacity was measured for rhomboclase by relaxation calorimetry but a critical analysis of entropies for several oxysalts showed that these data are too high. Entropies for both phases were estimated from a Kopp-rule algorithm. The enthalpies of formation and entropies were combined with previously published temperature-relative humidity brackets to generate an internally consistent thermodynamic data set for rhomboclase: ΔfH° = –3202.03 kJ/mol, S° = 378.7 J/(mol⋅K); and for (H3O)1.34Fe(SO4)2.17 : ΔfH° = –2276.25 kJ/mol, S° = 253.2 J/(mol⋅K). Solubility experiments at room temperature and at T = 4 °C agree well with previously reported data in the system Fe2O3-SO3-H2O. An inspection of the extended Pitzer model for Fe3+-SO4 solutions shows that this model reproduces the general topology of the phase diagram, but the position of the calculated solubility curves deviates substantially from the experimental data. Solid-state 2H MAS NMR spectra on deuterated rhomboclase show two isotropic chemical shifts δiso(2H) = of 8 ± 1 and 228 ± 1 ppm, assigned to D5O2+

Crystal structure and properties of imidazo-pyridine ionic liquids

\text{D}_5\text{O}^+_2

Ionicity and Electrochemical Properties of Visible Light Absorbing Pyrrolidinium m-Nitrophenolate

and Fe-OD2 groups, respectively. Canonical ensemble (NVT) molecular dynamics simulations for (H3O)Fe(SO4)2 at T = 300 K showed that the H3O+ groups maintain their trigonal pyramidal geometry and perform different types of motion.