Dodecahedral Metal Coordination: Are There Two Distances to Coordinating Atoms?

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The discussion centers on the coordination distances in dodecahedral metal complexes, questioning whether there are indeed two distinct distances from a cation to different types of coordinating anions. Calculations suggest that if all anion-anion distances are equal, the resulting cation-anion distances vary significantly, with some being 3.5R and others as short as 1.8R. This raises doubts about the assumption of equal anion-anion distances. Additionally, the conversation touches on capped trigonal prisms, indicating that capping anions likely result in larger cation-anion distances to prevent overcrowding. The findings highlight the complexity of coordination chemistry and the need for careful consideration of geometric arrangements.
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Is it true that there should be two distances from a dodecahedrally coordinated cation to the two types of coordinating atoms?
When I calculate what the octahedron should look like assuming that all anion-anion distances are equal I will get two different cation-anion distances:
if all anion-anion distances equal 2R, the cation-anion distances will be 3.5R for four of the anions and only 1.8R (!) for the other four anions.

Does this make sense?
Or am I wrong in assuming that all the anion-anion distances should be equal?

What holds for capped trigonal prisms? There probably there will be a larger cation-anion distance for the capping anions, right? (Otherwise the anions would come too close! Or?)
 
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osskall said:
What holds for capped trigonal prisms? There probably there will be a larger cation-anion distance for the capping anions, right? (Otherwise the anions would come too close! Or?)

OK, I just calculated for a triply capped trigonal prism that there is just one radius ratio: 0.73

For a dodecahedron I calculate 0.83 as the minimum radius ratio (for cation-anion interactions) but this leaves four out of eight coordinating atoms at almost twice the distance (as described above)...
 
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