The Local Structure of Liquid TiCl4 Analyzed by X-Ray Diffraction and Raman Spectroscopy

Structural analyses were performed to determine the local structure of liquid TiCl4 using laboratory-scale X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy from which the existence of tetrahedral TiCl4 molecules in the liquid was definitely confirmed. Conventionally, in molten salts, the valence increase of the central metal ion, for example in the range from 1 to 3, leads to more complicated liquid structures, yet a further increase in valence is usually accompanied by an enhanced covalency, forming stable tetrahedral molecules like e. g. CCl4. We discuss the intermolecular structure of TiCl4 liquid as well as the intramolecular one.