Local Structure of Molten CdCl 2 Systems

The local structure of molten CdCl 2 was investigated by X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) and X-ray diffraction(XRD) analyses. The nearest Cd 2+ -Cl − distance decreases from 2.61 Å in the room temperature solid state to 2.47 - 2.50 Å in the molten state. The coordination number decreases from 6 in the solid to 4 in the melt. The obtained structural parameters from the XAFS and the XRD analyses suggest that a tetrahedral coordination (CdCl 4 ) 2− is predominant in molten CdCl 2 . The XAFS result of a molten 50%CdCl 2 -KCl mixture shows that the 4-fold (CdCl 4 ) 2− structure holds also in the mixture