Structural study of the N,N'-dimethylpropyleneurea solvated lanthanoid(III) ions in solution and solid state with an analysis of the ionic radii of lanthanoid(III) ions.

The structures of the N,N'-dimethylpropyleneurea (dmpu) solvated lanthanoid(III) ions have been studied in dmpu solution (La-Nd, Sm-Lu) and in solid iodide salts (La-Nd, Sm, Gd-Lu) by extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS), and single crystal X-ray diffraction (La, Pr, Nd, Gd, Tb, Er, Yb, and Lu); the EXAFS studies were performed on both K and L(III) absorption edges. Because of the space-demanding properties of dmpu upon coordination, dmpu solvated metal ions often show coordination numbers lower than those found in corresponding hydrates and solvates of oxygen donor solvents without steric requirements beyond the size of the donor atom. All lanthanoid(III) ions are seven-coordinate in solution, except lutetium(III) which is six-coordinated in regular octahedral fashion, whereas in the solid iodide salts the dmpu solvated lanthanoid(III) ions are all six-coordinate in regular octahedral fashion. A comparison of Ln-O bond lengths in a large number of lanthanoid(III) complexes with neutral oxygen donor ligands and different configurations shows that the metal ion-oxygen distance is specific for each coordination number with a narrow bond distance distribution. This also shows that the radius of the coordinated oxygen atom in these compounds can be assumed to be 1.34 A as proposed for coordinated water, while for ethers such as tetrahydrofuran (thf) it is somewhat larger. Using this atomic radius of oxygen in coordinated water molecules, we have calculated the ionic radii of the lanthanoid(III) ions in four- to nine-coordination and evaluated using the bond lengths reported for homo- and heteroleptic complexes in oxygen donor solvates in solution and solid state. This yields new and revised ionic radii which in some instances are significantly different from the ionic radii normally referenced in the literature, including interpolated values for the elusive promethium(III) ion.