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Oxidation States of Vanadium

Last updated

Feb 22, 2023
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- Orbitz Fruit Drink
- Oxides of Nitrogen

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Chemical Concepts Demonstrated

Oxidation/reduction chemistry
Variable oxidation states for transition metals

Demonstration

Three solutions are used in the demo.

VO₂⁺solution: NaOH dissolved in water. Add ammonium vanadate (NH₄VO₃) and 2M H₂SO₄.
Zinc amalgam: Dissolve HgCl₂in DI water. Add HNO₃ and 200-mesh Zn. Poured off liquid.
Ce⁴⁺ Oxidizer: Dissolve Ce(NO₃)₆ in water.

200 mL of water are added to a buret, and zinc amalgam is packed inside. V²⁺ is collected in the flask and 0.1M Ce⁴⁺is added.
Add a small amount of NaHSO₃ to a beaker containing the VO₂⁺solution.
A test tube is half-filled with 0.1M V²⁺, the other half with 0.1M Ce⁴⁺and allowed to sit overnight.

Observations

The test tube ends up having three or four layers inside of it. Yellow is at the top, blue is below that, green is below the blue, and violet is at the bottom.

Explanation

Each one of the layers represents a different oxidation state of vanadium:

Yellow	VO₂⁺
Blue	VO²⁺
Green	V³⁺
Violet	V²⁺

The oxidation reactions that take place in the demonstration are caused by oxidizing/reducing agents of various strengths. The resulting oxidation products separate from each other in the test tube. The reduction potentials are as follows:

VO₂⁺to VO²⁺(yellow to blue)	E^{^o} = 1.0 V
VO²⁺to V³⁺(blue to green)	E^{^o} = .33 V
V³⁺to V²⁺(green to violet)	E^{^o} = -.26 V
V²⁺to V	E^{^o} = -1.18 V

Contributors

Dr. George Bodner (Perdue University)

Chemical Concepts Demonstrated

Demonstration

Observations

Explanation

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