Hydration of lithium ions in an aqueous ion-exchange system was studied by means of semi-empirical moleculer orbital PM3tm calculations. The geometries of Li(H
2O)
m+ (
m=3-6), models of hydrated lithium ions in the solution phase, and C
6H
5-SO
3-...Li(H
2O)
m+ (
m=3-6), models in the resin phase, were optimized, and various energies were calculated. The results obtained by calculations showed that the Li
+-O bond of the hydrated Li
+ species was larger in length and, correspondingly, the stabilization energy of hydration was smaller in the resin phase than in the solution phase. Li(H
2O)
4+ was found to have two conformations with nearly equivalent values of heat of formation in the resin phase, suggesting the presence of multiple conformations of a hydrated Li
+ species in the resin phase. It was also indicated that the hydration number was slightly smaller in the resin phase than it was in the solution phase. These results are consistent with the lithium isotope effects experimentally observed in an ion-exchange system.
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