Skip to main content
Chemistry LibreTexts

22.4B: Yttrium(III) Ion

  • Page ID
    34492
  • \( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)\(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)\(\newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)

    As a trivalent transition metal, yttrium forms various inorganic compounds, generally in the oxidation state of +3, by giving up all three of its valence electrons. A good example is yttrium(III) oxide (\(\ce{Y2O3}\)), also known as yttria, a six-coordinate white solid.

    Yttrium forms a water-insoluble fluoride, hydroxide, and oxalate, but its bromide, chloride, iodide, nitrate and sulfate are all soluble in water. The \(\ce{Y^{3+}}\) ion is colorless in solution because of the absence of electrons in the d and f electron shells. With halogens, yttrium forms trihalides such as yttrium(III) fluoride (\(\ce{YF3}\)), yttrium(III) chloride (\(\ce{YCl3}\)), and yttrium(III) bromide (\(\ce{YBr3}\)) at temperatures above roughly 200 °C.

    \[\ce{2 Y(s) + 3F2 \rightarrow YF3(s)}\]

    Similarly, carbon, phosphorus, selenium, silicon and sulfur all form binary compounds with yttrium at elevated temperatures.

    Water readily reacts with yttrium and its compounds to form \(\ce{Y2O3}\). Concentrated nitric and hydrofluoric acids do not rapidly attack yttrium, but other strong acids do.

    Organoyttrium chemistry is the study of compounds containing carbon-yttrium bonds. They are studied in academic research, but have not received widespread use otherwise. These compounds use \(\ce{YCl3}\) as a starting material, which is in turn obtained in a reaction of \(\ce{Y2O3}\) with concentrated hydrochloric acid and ammonium chloride.

    Hapticity is a term to describe the coordination of a group of contiguous atoms of a ligand bound to the central atom; it is indicated by the Greek character eta, \(η\). Yttrium complexes were the first examples of complexes where carboranyl ligands were bound to a d0-metal center through a η7-hapticity. Vaporization of the graphite intercalation compounds graphite–Y or graphite–Y2O3 leads to the formation of endohedral fullerenes such as Y@C82. Electron spin resonance studies indicated the formation of \(\ce{Y^{3+}}\) and (C82)3− ion pairs. The carbides Y3C, Y2C, and YC2 can be hydrolyzed to form hydrocarbons.

    Contributors and Attributions

    • Wikipedia

    22.4B: Yttrium(III) Ion is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

    • Was this article helpful?