Investigation of Mn2+-Doped Stearic-Acid Through XRD, Raman, and FT-IR, and Thermal Studies

In this research, we investigated the influence of Mn2+ ions on the packing in stearic acid (SA) crystals through the use of Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The crystals investigated were obtained utilizing the slow evaporation methodology in a hexane solution under varying manganese (Mn) concentrations sourced from MnSO4 5H2O (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 4.0, and 6.0%). XRD studies indicated that all SA crystals were grown in the Bm form (monoclinic), favoring the gauche conformation in molecular packing. Additionally, crystalline lattice modifications were observed through Raman spectral changes in the low-vibrational energy region. Variations in the intensities and Raman shifts in two lattice vibrational modes, centered at approximately 59 and 70 cm−1, revealed that two types of hydrogen bonds are distinctly affected within the crystalline lattice. Furthermore, the unit cell parameters (a, b, c, and β) were determined via Rietveld refinement, and their behavior was analyzed as a function of Mn concentration. The results indicated that Mn2+ ions exert a strain and deformation effect on the unit cell. Lastly, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was employed to evaluate the thermal stability of the Bm form of SA crystals.