Solvation structure of Zn2+ and Cu2+ ions in acetonitrile: a combined EXAFS and XANES study

The solvation structure of Zn2+ and Cu2+ in acetonitrile has been determined by a combined approach using both X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) and the extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy. For the former cation, an octahedral geometry of the acetonitrile solvate complex has been found with a Zn-N distance of 2.12(1) Å. For the Cu2+ solvates the EXAFS technique has been found to be not able to provide a conclusive determination of the coordination numbers and polyhedral environment, while the analysis of the XANES spectra unambiguously shows the existence of an axially elongated square pyramidal coordination, ruling out the previously proposed octahedral Jahn-Teller (JT) distorted geometry. The Cu-N distances obtained are 2.00(1) and 2.28(2) Å for the equatorial and axial ligands, respectively, and the EXAFS and XANES techniques find values of the bond distances in good agreement. The XANES technique has proven to be extremely powerful in providing a reliable resolution of solution structure for dynamic ion complexes. © 2015 American Chemical Society.