Gamma-alumina: a single-crystal X-ray diffraction study.

The structure of gamma-alumina (Al21+1/3square2+2/3O32) crystals obtained as a product of a corrosion reaction between beta-sialon and steel was refined in the space group Fd3m. The oxygen sublattice is fully occupied. The refined occupancy parameters are 0.83 (3), 0.818 (13), 0.066 (14) and 0.044 (18) for Al ions in 8a, 16d, 16c and 48f positions, respectively. The Al ions are distributed over octahedral and tetrahedral sites in a 63:37 ratio, with 6% of all Al ions occupying non-spinel positions.