Hi; I hope you don¹t mind me posting a question about feff9 to this list, but the feff userlist is defunct. I am trying to learn feff9 by reproducing the work in a JPCA recent paper (JPCA 2011, 115, 2345). I have a calculated structure for U(H2O)8]4+ ion that is nearly identical to that of the paper and so I am using that structure. I have been able to run several test cases for feff9 and I think I have a reasonable understanding of the different cards in feff9 however there are definitely some particulars for these f-element ions that are eluding me. My primary question surround how to deal with ion charge 1. I have tried several options with the ion card, everything from the U having a charge of 4 and the O-atoms zero, to partial charges like 2 and 0.25. However, in each case I get errors that state: ION: Expert option, please read documentation carefully and check your results. ION: Expert option, please read documentation carefully and check your results. U4+-8h2o Now if I run the calculation with no charges on the atoms everything proceeds very smoothly. The manual states that charges typically should not exceed 1 for an atom but in a highly charged system what are you to do? Thank you; Aurora