β,β-Isomer of Open-Wells–Dawson Polyoxometalate Containing a Tetra-Iron(III) Hydroxide Cluster: [{Fe4(H2O)(OH)5}(β,β-Si2W18O66)]9−

The β,β-isomer of open-Wells–Dawson polyoxometalate (POM) containing a tetra-iron(III) cluster, K9[{Fe4(H2O)(OH)5}(β,β-Si2W18O66)]·17H2O (potassium salt of β,β-Fe4-open), was synthesized by reacting Na9H[A-β-SiW9O34]·23H2O with FeCl3·6H2O at pH 3, and characterized by X-ray crystallography, FTIR, elemental analysis, TG/DTA, UV–Vis, and cyclic voltammetry. X-ray crystallography revealed that the {Fe3+4(H2O)(OH)5}7+ cluster was included in the open pocket of the β,β-type open-Wells–Dawson polyanion [β,β-Si2W18O66]16− formed by the fusion of two trilacunary β-Keggin POMs, [A-β-SiW9O34]10−, via two W–O–W bonds. The β,β-open-Wells–Dawson polyanion corresponds to an open structure of the standard γ-Wells–Dawson POM. β,β-Fe4-open is the first example of the compound containing a geometrical isomer of α,α-open-Wells–Dawson structural POM.