Aqueous complexation of citrate with neodymium(iii) and americium(iii): a study by potentiometry, absorption spectrophotometry, microcalorimetry, and XAFS

Abstract

The aqueous complexation of Nd(III) and Am(III) with anions of citrate was studied by potentiometry, absorption spectrophotometry, microcalorimetry, and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS). Using potentiometric titration data fitting the metal–ligand (L) complexes that were identified for Nd(III) were NdHL, NdL, NdHL₂, and NdL₂; a review of trivalent metal-citrate complexes is also included. Stability constants for these complexes were calculated from potentiometric and spectrophotometric titrations. Microcalorimetric results concluded that the entropy term of complex formation is much more dominant than the enthalpy. XAFS results showed a dependence in the Debye–Waller factor that indicated Nd(III)-citrate complexation over the pH range of 1.56–6.12.