Scribd
Upload
1K views4 pages

CH 03

This document discusses crystal structures and properties of metals and ceramics. It contains concept checks that ask about: (1) the coordination number and crystal structure of K2O, (2) the difference between crystal structure and crystal system, (3) how interplanar spacing changes with increasing planar indices in cubic crystals, and (4) why noncrystalline materials do not display allotropy.

Uploaded by

psaiaswin
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
1K views4 pages

CH 03

This document discusses crystal structures and properties of metals and ceramics. It contains concept checks that ask about: (1) the coordination number and crystal structure of K2O, (2) the difference between crystal structure and crystal system, (3) how interplanar spacing changes with increasing planar indices in cubic crystals, and (4) why noncrystalline materials do not display allotropy.

Uploaded by

psaiaswin
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 4

Chapter 3

Structures of Metals and Ceramics

Concept Check 3.1

Question: Table 3.4 gives the ionic radii for K+ and O2- as 0.138 and 0.140 nm,
respectively.
(a) What would be the coordination number for each O2- ion?
(b) Briefly describe the resulting crystal structure for K2O.

(c) Explain why this is called the antifluorite structure.


Answer: (a) First, let us find the coordination number of each O2- ion for K2O. Taking

the cation-anion radii ratio

r +
K = 0.138 nm = 0.986
r 2- 0.140 nm
O

From Table 3.3, the coordination number for oxygen is eight.


(b) According to Table 3.5, for a coordination number of eight for both cations and
anions, the crystal structure should be cesium chloride. However, there are twice as many K+ as
O2- ions. Therefore, the centers of the K+ ions are positioned at the corners of cubic unit cells,
while half of the cube centers are occupied by O2- ions.
(c) This structure is called the antifluorite crystal structure because anions and cations
are interchanged with one another from the fluorite structure (Figure 3.8).
Concept Check 3.2

Question: What is the difference between crystal structure and crystal system?
Answer: A crystal structure is described by both the geometry of, and atomic
arrangements within, the unit cell, whereas a crystal system is described only in terms of the unit
cell geometry. For example, face-centered cubic and body-centered cubic are crystal structures
that belong to the cubic crystal system.
Concept Check 3.3

Question: For cubic crystals, as values of the planar indices h, k, and l increase, does
the distance between adjacent and parallel planes (i.e., the interplanar spacing) increase or
decrease? Why?
Answer: The interplanar spacing between adjacent and parallel planes decreases as the
values of h, k, and l increase. As values of the planar indices increase, the magnitude of the
denominator in Equation 3.15 increases, with the result that the interplanar spacing (dhkl)

decreases.
Concept Check 3.4

Question: Do noncrystalline materials display the phenomenon of allotropy (or


polymorphism)? Why or why not?
Answer: Noncrystalline materials do not display the phenomenon of allotropy; since a
noncrystalline material does not have a defined crystal structure, it cannot have more than one
crystal structure, which is the definition of allotropy.

You might also like