The use of first-principles DFT calculations to interpret solid-state 89Y MAS NMR spectra of Y2Ti2-x Sn x O7 pyrochlores, materials with applications for the encapsulation of actinide-bearing radioactive waste, is investigated. Although NMR is a sensitive probe of local structure, which does not rely on the presence of long-range order, spectra of disordered materials are often complex and difficult to interpret. We show how calculations can be used alongside experiment to confirm that Y occupies only the eight-coordinate pyrochlore A site in these materials and that the 89Y isotropic chemical shift is primarily affected by the number of Sn/Ti on the neighboring B sites. Small changes in local geometry and more distant B-site cation substitutions are shown to have a smaller effect on the chemical shift, and will result in broadening, shoulders, and small splittings in the NMR spectrum. In general, the results confirm the validity of the assumptions made in the previous spectral analysis, although in a very small minority of cases, chemical shifts are calculated which lie outside the expected ranges. However, these are shown to result from significant deviations in local geometry (O−Y−O bond angles and Y−O bond distances) and are thought to arise from the periodicity (and, therefore, long-range order) which is imposed in the calculations. Using our calculated results we can confirm that there is a random distribution of Sn/Ti on the six-coordinated pyrochlore B sites in Y2Ti2-x Sn x O7, and also demonstrate that an equilibrium structure has been achieved by studying materials which have been annealed for different durations.

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A combination of (89)Y and (119)Sn NMR spectroscopy and DFT calculations are used to investigate phase evolution, local structure and disorder in Y2Zr2-xSnxO7 ceramics, where a phase change is predicted, from pyrochlore to defect fluorite, with increasing Zr content. The ability of NMR to effectively probe materials that exhibit positional and compositional disorder provides insight into the atomic-scale structure in both ordered and disordered phases and, by exploiting the quantitative nature of the technique, we are able to determine detailed information on the composition of the phase(s) present and the average coordination number (and next-nearest neighbour environment) of the cations. In contrast to previous studies, a more complex picture of the phase variation with composition emerges, with single-phase pyrochlore found only for the Sn end member, and a single defect fluorite phase only for x = 0 to 0.6. A broad two-phase region is observed, from x = 1.8 to 0.8, but the two phases present have very different composition, with a maximum of 13% Zr incorporated into the pyrochlore phase, whereas the composition of the defect fluorite phase varies throughout. Preferential ordering of the anion vacancies in the defect fluorite phase is observed, with Sn only ever found in a six-coordinate environment, while remaining vacancies are shown to be more likely to be associated with Zr than Y. Our findings are then discussed in the light of those from previous studies, many of which utilize diffraction-based approaches, where, in most cases, a single phase of fixed composition has been assumed for the refinement procedure. The significant and surprising differences encountered demonstrate the need for complementary approaches to be considered for a detailed and accurate picture of both the long- and short-range structure of a solid to be achieved.

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The crystal structures of the compounds La 2Àx Y x Zr 2 O 7 and La 2Àx Y x Hf 2 O 7 with x ¼ 0.0, 0.4, 0.8, 1.2, 1.6, and 2.0 have been studied using neutron powder diffraction and electron microscopy to determine the stability fields of the pyrochlore and fluorite solid solutions. The limits of pyrochlore stability in these solid solutions are found to be close to La 0.8 Y 1.2 Zr 2 O 7 and La 0.4 Y 1.6 Hf 2 O 7 , respectively. In both systems the unit cell parameter is found to vary linearly with Y content across those compositions where the pyrochlore phase is stable, as does the x-coordinate of the oxygen atoms on the 48f (x, 3 8 , 3 8 ) sites. In both systems, linear extrapolations of the pyrochlore data suggest that the disordering is accompanied by a small decrease in the lattice parameter of approximately 0.4%. After the pyrochlore solid solution limit is reached, a sharp change is observed from x$0.41 to 0.375 as the disordered defect fluorite structure is favoured. Electron diffraction patterns illustrate that some short-range order remains in the disordered defect fluorite phases.

The yttrium local environment in the series of pyrochlores Y2Ti2-xSnxO7 was studied using 89Y NMR. Oxides with the pyrochlore structure exhibit a range of interesting physical and chemical properties, resulting in many technological applications, including the encapsulation of lanthanide- and actinide-bearing radioactive waste. The use of the nonradioactive Y3+ cation provides a sensitive probe for any changes in the local structure and ordering with solid solution composition, through 89Y (I = 1/2) NMR. We confirm that a single pyrochlore phase is formed over the entire compositional range, with Y found only on the eight-coordinated A site. A significant (approximately 15 ppm) chemical shift is observed for each Sn substituted into the Y second neighbor coordination environment. The spectral signal intensities of the possible combinations of Sn/Ti neighbors match those predicted statistically assuming a random distribution of Sn4+/Ti4+ on the six-coordinated pyrochlore B site.

We have studied the long-range average and local structures in Y 2 Sn 2−x Zr x O 7 (x = 0−2.0) using synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, respectively, and by theoretical methods. While the diffraction data indicate a clear phase transition from ordered pyrochlore to disordered defectfluorite at x ∼ 1.0−1.2, X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) results at the Zr L 3 -and Y L 2 -edges reveal a gradual structural evolution across the whole compositional range. These findings provide experimental evidence that the local disorder occurs long before the pyrochlore to defect-fluorite phase boundary, as determined by X-ray diffraction, and the extent of disorder continues to develop throughout the defectfluorite region. The Zr and Y L-edge spectra are very sensitive to changes in the local structure; such sensitivity enables us to reveal the progressive nature of the phase transition. Experimental results are supported by ab initio atomic scale simulations, which provide a mechanism for disorder to initiate in the pyrochlore structure. Further, the coordination numbers of the cations in both the defect-fluorite and pyrochlore structures are predicted, and the trends agree well with the experimental XANES results. The calculations predict that the coordination of cations in the Y 2 Zr 2 O 7 defect-fluorite (normally considered to be 7 for all cations) varies depending on the species with the average coordination of Y and Zr being 7.2 and 6.8, respectively.

The local structure and cation disorder in Y2(Sn,Ti)2O7 pyrochlores, materials proposed for the encapsulation of lanthanide- and actinide-bearing radioactive waste, is investigated using 89Y (I = 1/2) NMR spectroscopy and, in particular, measurement of the 89Y anisotropic shielding. Although known to be a good probe of the local environment, information on the anisotropy of the shielding interaction is removed under magic angle spinning (MAS). Here, we consider the feasibility of experimental measurement of the 89Y anisotropic shielding interaction using two-dimensional CSA-amplified PASS experiments, implemented for 89Y for the first time. Despite the challenges associated with the study of low-γ nuclei, and those resulting from long T1 relaxation times, the successful implementation of these experiments is demonstrated for the end member pyrochlores, Y2Sn2O7 and Y2Ti2O7. The accuracy and robustness of the measurement to various experimental parameters is also considered, before the approach is then applied to the disordered materials in the solid solution. The anisotropies extracted for each of the sideband manifolds are compared to those obtained using periodic first-principles calculations, and provide strong support for the assignment of the spectral resonances. The value of the span, Ω, is shown to be a sensitive probe of the next nearest neighbor (NNN) environment, i.e., the number of Sn and Ti on the six surrounding “B” (i.e., six-coordinate) sites, and also provides information on the local geometry directly, through a correlation with the average Y–O8b distance (where 8b indicates the Wyckoff position of the oxygen).