Crystal structures and comparisons of huntite aluminum borates RE Al 3 (BO 3 ) 4 ( RE = Tb, Dy and Ho)
Three huntite-type aluminoborates of stoichiometry RE Al 3 (BO 3 ) 4 ( RE = Tb, Dy and Ho), namely, terbium/dysprosium/holmium trialuminium tetrakis(borate), were synthesized by slow cooling within a K 2 Mo 3 O 10 flux with spontaneous crystallization. The crystal structures were determined using single-crystal X-ray diffraction (SC-XRD) data. The synthesized borates are isostructural to the huntite [CaMg 3 (CO 3 ) 4 ] structure and crystallized within the trigonal R 32 space group. The structural parameters were compared to literature data of other huntite RE Al 3 (BO 3 ) 4 crystals within the R 32 space group. All three borates fit well into the trends calculated from the literature data. The unit-cell parameters and volumes increase linearly with larger RE cations whereas the densities decrease. All of the crystals studied were refined as inversion twins.