Structure and properties of hydrated La(III), Nd(III) and Er(III) methanesulfonates

Detailed investigations of the methanesulfonates of neodymium and erbium pr esented in this work show that they have the same kind of structure as the dihydrated cerium, samarium and terbium methanesulfonates, while the lantha num compound exhibits a very unusual structure with water molecules bridgin g two metallic centers. The study of the far infrared spectra of the La(III ) to Lu(III) compounds in the 700-50 cm(-1) range has been shown to be a us eful tool for the indirect investigation of the structure of these kind of compounds. Thermal analyses indicate loss of water at temperatures of 100-2 00 degreesC, giving origin to the respective anhydrous salts, stable up to similar to 400 degreesC. The final residues are oxosulfates. (C) 2001 Elsev ier Science B.V. All rights reserved.