Lanthanide Complexes 2 Flashcards
Describe bonding in lanthanide complexes
- 4f orbitals are deep-seated and hence little involved in ligands binding
- Bonding in lanthanide complexes and solid state compounds is ionic in nature
- Largely non-directional as this suits the sterics the best e.g. not square planar
- Coordination chemistry is more in common with that of groups 1,2 and 13 than that of d-block
What are the 3 principles that determine bonding
- Lanthanide ions behave as hard Lewis acids. They thus have high affinity for hard bases such as F- and H2O.
- The bonding is largely non-directional and electrostatic in origin. Coordination geometries are largely determined by the size and shape (steric demands) of the coordinating ligands.
- The f-elements form large cations and thus support high coordination numbers. The size of the Ln3+ cations decreases across the series leading to higher charge densities and stronger ionic bonds for the heavier members.
Are Lns contracted
- No
- The 4f orbitals are
- The Ln are big ions
What ligands are the Ln happiest to bind to
- Cl, CCPh, Br, Ou
What ligands are the Ln happiest to bind to
- Cl, CCPh, Br, OBu
What happens when LnCl3 is dissoluted in water
- Dissolution of LnCl3 in H2O results in the formation of [Ln(H2O)x]3+
- where x = 9 for the first half of the series
- and x = 8 from Gd onwards.
What is structure of hydrated lanthanide ions
- Tricapped trigonal prismatic - tysonite
Describe pH of aqueous Ln
- Acidic as a result of hydrolysis
- Due to highly polarising nature of Ln3+ cations
- [Ln(H2O)9]3+ <–> [Ln(H2O)8(OH)]2+ + H+ <–> [Ln(H2O)7(OH)2]+ + 2H+ etc
- As water coordinates to lanthanide oh bonds weaken as electron density from Oxygen stabilising OH-
What happens to pH of aqueous solutions across the group
- Increasing acidity
- Ln3+ ions reduce in size- increasing charge density
- example of lanthanide contraction
Describe of aqueous compounds are labile or stable
- Aqueous compounds are labile
- Have high rate of exchange
. exchange of water - diffusion controlled
Describe the stability constant of lanthanide complexes
- A stability (formation) constant, K1, can be written for any complexing reaction between a Ln3+ ion and a ligand Ln–.
- M3+(aq) + Ln–(aq) <–>ML(3–n)+ (aq)
- K1 = [ML(3-n)+(aq)] / ([M3+(aq)][Ln–(aq)] )
What is needed for a stable Ln complex
- The noted high rates of exchange of ligands in Ln3+ complexes makes the isolation of their coordination complexes difficult – a kinetic effect.
- Polydentate ligands form especially stable complexes because of the chelate effect i.e. the favourable entropy change involved in the process – ie thermodymanic stabilisation.
- May have strong affinity for F- but not stable so would just be hydrated
What halogens do lanthanides form most stable complexes with
- The lanthanides form more stable complexes with hard fluoride than the softer halogens.
Does Lu or La have higher stability constants
- The values for Lu are consistently higher than for La as expected for the smaller ion with a higher charge/radius ratio.
Where are irregularities seen in stability constants
- Discontinuity often seen between Eu/Gd/Tb called the “gadolinium break”
- originates from variation in x for [Ln(H2O)x]3+ from 9 to 8 at Gadolinium.
- Decrease in H2O coordination number - decrease in positive value of deltaS
What are ion exchange methods
- Spin off from manhattan project
- Makes use of lanthanide contraction - entropic drive- chelate effect
- THe mixed lanthanides are loaded on to a cation-exchange resin and then eluted with a suitable complexing agent like EDTA or citric acid
- Heavier, smaller lanthanides are better Lewis acids
- Removed from resin first in order of their stability constants i.e. decreasing atomic number
What can access 4+ oxidation states
1 Only Ce4+ stable in aqueous solution for weeks, for example cerium ammonium nitrate (CAN)- important oxidant:
2. Ce2O3 + HNO3 + NH3 –> Ce(NO3)6(NH4)2 + H2O
3. Ce4+ has higher charge density than Ln3+
4. Much better at ionising water due to higher charge density
5. Stable for weeks at a time (12 coordinate)
6. Also can cerium ammonium sulphate
Why is +4 OS accessible for Ce
- Chemically accessible due to higher energy of 4f orbitals at start of series - similar in energy to 5d orbital
- Not sufficiently stable to prevent the loss of the 4th e-
- Ce3+ has 1 f electron - only one away from completely empty shell - closed shell is stable
Which elements can access Ln(II) chemistry
- Sm, Eu, Yb
Show how Ln2+ can be accessed
- LnCl3 + 1/2 Zn –> Ln2+
Describe stability of Ln(II) Aqueous complexes
- not stable long term,
- with Eu being stable for hours
- Sm, Yb for minutes - faster oxidation
- Eu 3+ –> Eu2+ E0 is less negative than for other two
What is Sm(II) Iodide used for
- Important reagent in organic synthesis
- Very bright colour- good colour changes + most reactive
Why is Eu2+ aqueous complex more stable than Sm and Yb
- Eu>Yb>Sm
- Eu more stable with respect to own +3 forms
- Eu> Sm due to higher exchange energy
- Eu> Yb : 7 rounds of pairing energy gives stability away
- Pairing energy not as important as exchange energy why Yb>Sm
- Sm is stronger reducing agent
Describe paramagnetism of Ln3+ compounds and consequence for spectra
- Ln3+ compounds are strongly paramagnetic which precludes useful NMR data (peaks are broadened and shifted).