Structure and IR vibrational spectra of Na8[AlSiO4]6(BH4)2: comparison of theory and experiment

The structure and IR vibrational spectra of tetrahydroborate sodalite (Na8[AlSiO4]6(BH4)2) were calculated using density functional theory (DFT) methods. The calculations, performed at the GGA hybrid DFT level yield a close agreement with XRD refinements of the structure and allow interpretation of observed bands of the enclosed BH4(–) and the framework and, in particular, a verification of hydrogen positions (Buhl, J.-C., Gesing, T. M., and Rüscher, C. H. Microporous Mesoporous Mater. 2005, 80, 57−63). In a first step, different basis sets and functionals were tested on NaBH4 and Na8[AlSiO4]6Cl2. We show that accurate treatment of B–H stretching modes requires anharmonic corrections, while lattice vibrations are well described within the harmonic approximation.