Disorder and the extent of polymerization in calcium silicate and aluminosilicate glasses: O-17 NMR results and quantum chemical molecular orbital calculations

Abstract

Estimation of the framework connectivity and the atomic structure of depolymerized silicate melts and glasses (NBO/T > 0) remains a difficult question in high-temperature geochemistry relevant to magmatic processes and glass science. Here, we explore the extent of disorder and the nature of polymerization in binary Ca-silicate and ternary Ca-aluminosilicate glasses with varying NBO/T (from 0 to 2.67) using O-17 NMR at two different magnetic fields of 9.4 and 14.1 T in conjunction with quantum chemical calculations. Non-random distributions among framework cations (Si and Al) are demonstrated in the variation of relative populations of oxygen sites with NBO/T. The proportion of non-bridging oxygen (NBO, Ca–O–Si) in the binary and ternary aluminosilicate glasses increases with NBO/T. While the trend is consistent with predictions from composition, the detailed fractions apparently deviate from the predicted values, suggesting further complications in the nature of polymerization. The proportion of each bridging oxygen in the glasses also varies with NBO/T. The fractions of Al–O–Si and Al–O–Al increase with increasing polymerization as CaO is replaced with Al 2O 3, while that of Si–O–Si seems to decrease, implying that activity of silica may decrease from calcium silicate to polymerized aluminosilicates ( X SiO 2 = constant ) . Quantum chemical molecular orbital calculations based on density functional theory show that a silicate chain with Al–NBO (Ca–O–Al) has an energy penalty (calculated cluster energy difference) of about 108 kJ/mol compared with the cluster with Ca–O–Si, consistent with preferential depolymerization of Si-networks, reported in an earlier O-17 NMR study [Allwardt, J., Lee, S.K., Stebbins, J.F., 2003. Bonding preferences of non-bridging oxygens in calcium aluminosilicate glass: Evidence from O-17 MAS and 3QMAS NMR on calcium aluminate glass. Am. Mineral. 88, 949–954]. These prominent types of non-randomness in the distributions suggest significant chemical order in silicate glasses that leads to a decrease in silica activity coefficient and will be useful in modeling transport properties of melts.