The Affinity of Gallium(III) and Indium(III) for Nitrogen Donor Ligands

Abstract

Dedicated to Professor Arthur Martell on the occasion of his seventy fifth birthday.

The complexes of In(III) and Ga(III) with a variety of nitrogen donor ligands were studied in aqueous solution by glass electrode potentiometry at 25°C in 0.1 M NaNO₃. The ligands were 2-aminomethylpyri-dine (AMPY), ethylenediamine (EN), N,N,N',N'-tetrakis(2-hydroxypropyl)ethylenediamine (THPED), and N,N-bis(2-hydroxyethyl)glycine (BICIN). A variety of mixed ligand complexes of the MLOH type were detected with many of the above ligands as L. The logK₁ values obtained were with Ga(III) 8.40 (AMPY), 7.94 (THPED) 12.72 (EN), and In(III) 7.6 (AMPY), 8.20 (THPED), and 7.06 (BICIN). These formation constants are discussed in relation to previous predictions that In(III) and Ga(III) would have a substantial chemistry with nitrogen donor ligands. Of particular interest is the Ga(III) system with EN, where a very stable Ga(EN)³⁺ complex is formed, but no higher complexes except for hydrolyzed species such as Ga(EN)OH²⁺ and Ga(EN)(OH)₂ ⁺.