Microscopic structure of LiCl.6D₂O in glassy and liquid phases

Abstract

The authors present the first experimental analysis of the chlorine-water distribution in the glassy and liquid state of LiCl.6D2O. The results are based on neutron diffraction experiments performed at a spallation source. Evidence of a fundamental structural change within the hydration shell around a chlorine ion in the glassy state is given although the D2O intramolecular characteristics remain unchanged. At the same time, as the water molecules become more localized within the chlorine hydration shell, the system orders over nearly twice the distance (three more D2O shells being detectable) and this is possibly accompanied by an ordering of the ion distribution.