Electrochemical and spectroscopic studies of the chloro and oxochloro complex formation of Nb(V) and Ta(V) in NaCl-AlCl3 melts

The equilibrium constant for the chloro complex formation of Nb(V) NbCl6-<--->NbCl5+Cl- (i) in NaCl-AlCl3 melts at 175 degrees C was found to be pKi = 2.86(5). The oxochloro complex formation of Nb(V) and Ta(V) in NaCl-AlCl3 melts at 175 degrees C could be explained by the following equilibria: MOCl4- <-->MOCl3+Cl- (ii) MOCl3<-->MOCl2(+)+Cl- (iii) where M = Nb and Ta. The equilibrium constants determined by potentiometric measurements with chlorine-chloride electrodes were, for M = Nb, pKii = 2.21(4) and pKiii = 3.95(5) and, for M = Ta, pKii = 2.743(15) and pKiii = 4.521(13). NbCl6- has two bands in the UV-vis region, a strong one at 34.7 x 10(3) cm-1 and a weaker one at 41.6 x 10(3) cm-1. The MOCl4- complexes showed in the case of Nb(V) absorption bands at 32.7 and 42.9 x 10(3) cm-1 and in the case of Ta(V) at 38.6 and 48.1 x 10(3) cm-1.