Al2CoO4
cobalt aluminate · Thenard's blue
Al2CoO4 is a thermodynamically stable, insulating oxide material utilized in the study of oxygen-evolution catalysis.
About cobalt aluminate
Al2CoO4 is a stable oxide compound that sits on the convex hull, indicating significant thermodynamic robustness. As a member of the oxide oxygen-evolution catalyst class, it possesses a wide-band-gap electronic structure that characterizes it as an insulator, distinguishing it from more conductive metallic oxides.
This material is frequently studied for its structural stability and its role in catalytic processes. Its presence across multiple databases confirms its status as a well-documented inorganic compound of interest for researchers investigating oxygen-evolution reaction pathways.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for cobalt aluminate, aggregated across 5 databases.
Band GapEnergy needed to move an electron from the valence band to the conduction band. Lower or zero values tend to behave more metallic; larger gaps are more insulating or semiconducting.
Energy Above HullThermodynamic distance from the most stable set of competing phases. 0 eV/atom is on the convex hull; small positive values may still be experimentally accessible.
StabilityA plain-language summary of the best reported energy-above-hull result. It reflects whether the lowest-energy structure is on, near, or far from the stability hull.
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of Al2CoO4. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.
Agreement ScoreA normalized confidence score summarizing how closely independent DFT databases agree. Higher scores mean tighter cross-source agreement.
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for Al2CoO4, ranked by energy above hull.
| Space GroupSymmetry classification of the crystal arrangement. The number is the international space-group index. | Crystal SystemBroad lattice family, such as cubic, tetragonal, monoclinic, or triclinic, derived from unit-cell symmetry. | Band Gap (eV)Electronic gap calculated for this specific reported structure, measured in electronvolts. | E above hull (eV/atom)Thermodynamic distance from the convex hull for this structure, normalized per atom. Lower is generally more stable. | E/atom (eV)Computed total energy normalized per atom. Use energy above hull, not this value alone, when comparing stability. | Density (g/cm³)Mass per relaxed crystal volume, reported in grams per cubic centimeter. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P3m1 (No. 156) | trigonal | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -7.802 | 4.29 |
| — | — | 3.16 | 0.0003 | -2.754 | — |
| — | — | 3.01 | 0.0015 | -2.753 | — |
| Fd-3m (No. 227) | cubic | 3.22 | 0.0217 | -7.780 | 4.45 |
| P3m1 (No. 156) | trigonal | 1.99 | 0.0367 | -7.765 | 4.29 |
| Cm (No. 8) | monoclinic | 2.47 | 0.0380 | -7.764 | 4.31 |
| R3m (No. 160) | trigonal | 0.00 | 0.0514 | -7.750 | 4.29 |
| Fd-3m (No. 227) | cubic | 0.74 | 0.0531 | -2.593 | — |
| Fd-3m (No. 227) | cubic | 0.74 | 0.0531 | -2.593 | — |
| R3m (No. 160) | trigonal | 0.00 | 0.0779 | -7.724 | 4.29 |
| R3m (No. 160) | trigonal | 0.00 | 0.0867 | -7.715 | 4.29 |
| Fd-3m (No. 227) | cubic | — | — | — | 4.41 |
Synthesis Routes
Literature-extracted synthesis procedures targeting Al2CoO4.
Applications
Where cobalt aluminate is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about cobalt aluminate, answered from cross-validated data.
What is Al2CoO4?
Al2CoO4 is a thermodynamically stable, insulating oxide material utilized in the study of oxygen-evolution catalysis.
What is Al2CoO4 used for?
What is the band gap of Al2CoO4?
Is Al2CoO4 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is Al2CoO4 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of Al2CoO4?
What is the density of Al2CoO4?
How many polymorphs of Al2CoO4 are known?
How is Al2CoO4 synthesized?
What elements does Al2CoO4 contain?
Where does the data for Al2CoO4 come from?
How It Compares
Within the oxide oxygen-evolution catalysts class.
Unlike the highly conductive or metallic-like perovskites such as LaNiO3 or LaMnO3, Al2CoO4 functions as a wide-gap insulator. While materials like LiCoO2 or LiMn2O4 are primarily recognized for their electrochemical utility in battery systems, Al2CoO4 offers a different electronic profile within the broader category of oxide catalysts, providing a stable, insulating framework for specialized catalytic applications.
Related Compounds
Other Oxide Oxygen-Evolution Catalysts in the database.
Data sources & attribution
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
- oqmd — Data from the OQMD (oqmd.org). Cite: Saal et al., JOM 65, 1501 (2013); Kirklin et al., npj Comp. Mater. 1, 15010 (2015). (CC-BY-4.0)
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
- cod — Data from the Crystallography Open Database (crystallography.net/cod/). Cite: Grazulis et al., J. Appl. Cryst. 42, 726 (2009). (CC0-1.0)
- mpaloe — Data from MP-ALOE. Cite: Kuner et al., npj Comput. Mater. (2025), doi:10.1038/s41524-025-01834-9.
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