Crystal and molecular structure of tetraphenylarsonium aquotetrachlorohydroxotellurate(IV)

Abstract

The structure of the title compound has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction using diffractometer data and refined to a final R of 5·1%. Crystals are monoclinic, a= 18·71 ± 0·03, b= 7·31 ± 0·02, c= 19·29 ± 0·03 Å, β= 92·03 ± 0·05°, with Z= 4, space group either C2/c or Cc. The structure has been refined in both space groups and a chemically similar structure obtained although the evidence favours a disordered model in the centrosymmetric space group C2/c. Tetraphenylarsonium ions, whose bond lengths and angles agree well with earlier studies, are present. The anion consists of a square pyramidal [TeCl₄O] group with an apical oxygen atom but it is not possible to distinguish between the [TeCl₄(OH)]^– and [TeCl₄O]^2– formulations [Te–Cl 2·484(2), Te–O 1·74(1)Å]. Adjacent anions are weakly linked through water molecules interacting with the Te and O (or OH) groups to form an infinite chain structure.