Crystal structure of the Al(20)Mn(5.37)Ni(1.31) phase in the Al–Mn–Ni system

The inter­metallic phase with composition Al(20)Mn(5.37)Ni(1.31) (icosa­aluminium penta­manganese nickel) was synthesized by high-temperature sinter­ing of a mixture with initial chemical composition Al(60)Mn(7)Ni(3). Al(20)Mn(5.37)Ni(1.31) adopts the Co(2)Al(5) structure type in space-group type P6(3)/mmc, replacing the Co atoms with the transition-metal atoms Mn and Ni. Structure analysis revealed that one of the two transition-metal sites is partially occupied by Ni [refined occupancy 0.342 (2)] and the other is co-occupied by Mn and Ni with a ratio of 0.895 (14):0.105 (14). The present refined chemical composition is supported by complementary energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDX) analysis and is in agreement with the previously determined Al–Mn–Ni phase diagram [Balanetskyy et al. (2011 ▸). J. Alloys Compd, 509, 3795–3805]. [Image: see text]