Crystal structure of SrCo4(OH)(PO4)3, a new hy-droxy-phosphate.

Single crystals of strontium tetra-cobalt tris-(orthophosphate) hydroxide, SrCo4(OH)(PO4)3, were grown serendipitously under hydro-thermal conditions at 473 K. The crystal structure consists of undulating chains of edge-sharing [CoO6] octa-hedra that are linked into (010) layers by common vertices between chains. Adjacent layers are linked along [010] into a framework structure by tetra-hedral [CoO4] units and by PO4 tetra-hedra. The framework delimits channels extending along [100] in which the eleven-coordinate strontium cations are situated. Bifurcated O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds of weak strengths consolidate the crystal packing. The title compound was also characterized by infrared spectroscopy.