[N(n-Bu)4]2[Pu(NO3)6] and [N(n-Bu)4]2[PuCl6]: starting materials to facilitate nonaqueous plutonium(IV) chemistry.

The reaction of plutonium(IV) in aqueous nitric acid with tetra-n-butylammonium nitrate leads to the immediate precipitation of [N(n-Bu)(4)](2)[Pu(NO(3))(6)] (1) in high yield. The analogous reaction in HCl with tetra-n-butylammonium chloride gives [N(n-Bu)(4)](2)[PuCl(6)] (2). Both 1 and 2 are soluble in a range of organic solvents and have been characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, IR spectroscopy, and solid- and solution-phase vis-near-IR spectroscopy. 1 and 2 provide facile synthetic entry routes to study plutonium(IV) ligand complexation reactions in organic solvent media under both air/moisture-stable and -sensitive conditions.