The crystal and molecular structure of ammonium titanyl oxalate

Ammonium titanyl oxalate monohydrate, (NH4)2 TiO(C2O4)2·H2O, is monoclinic with cell parameters A = 13.473(2), B = 11.329(1), C = 17.646(2) A, β = 126.66(1)°. The space group is P21/c with Z = 8, dc = 1.808 g cm−3 and dm = 1.80 g cm−3. The crystal structure was determined from single-crystal diffractometer data and refined by least-squares methods using isotropic thermal parameters. The conventional R factor was 7.0% for 2466 used reflections. The anions consist of cyclic tetranuclear complexes [TiO O (C2O4)2]48− with symmetry. The titanium atoms are six-coordinated with two bridging oxygen atoms cis to one another and four oxygen atoms of bidentate oxalate groups, together forming a distorted octahedron. The titanium atoms of the tetramer are linked through oxygen atoms at two neighbouring apices of each octahedron. The actual name of the compound should therefore be: ammonium cyclotetra-di-μ-oxo-cis-dioxalatotitanate(IV)tetrahydrate. The di-μ-oxo-tetratitanium unit is an eight-membered ---O---Ti---O--- ring with Ti-O distances of successively 1.840(7), 1.785(7) and 1.855(6), 1.788(8) A, repeated by the centre of symmetry, and the orientation of the atoms suggests the presence of dπ---pπ 3-center 2-electron bonds in each Ti---O---Ti set. The Ti---O distances trans to the bridging oxygen atoms are much longer: 2.060(7), 2.101(7), 2.081(7) and 2.116(7) A respectively, as is to be expected from the charge displacement due to the dπ---pπ bonding. Most O---Ti---O angles in the distorted octahedra differ considerably from 90°. As was found by difference Fourier synthesis and thermal analysis, half of the crystal water is held very loosely compared to the other half.