Complexes of silver(III) with oxoanions

Silver(III) has a half-life at pH 11 of several hundred seconds in aqueous solutions in the presence of 0.1–1.0 M concentrations of certain basic oxoanions (Oxo) (phosphate, carbonate, borate, pyrophosphate, and arsenate). This compares with a lifetime of a few seconds at pH 11 in the absence of these oxoanions. UV-visible spectra and kinetic data for these solutions are interpreted as evidence for the following equilibria in the pH range 9–13.Ag(OH)₄^?1 + H₂O ? Ag(OH)₃H₂O + OH^? (1)Ag(OH)₄^?1 + Oxo ? Ag(OH)₃Oxo + OH^? (2)Ag(OH)₃Oxo + H₂O ? Ag(OH)₂(Oxo)H₂O + OH^? (3) Values of K₃ lie in the range 10^?3 < K₃ <10⁴ M for the systems studied. K₂ is estimated to be ～10² for phosphate and slightly smaller for the other systems. Ag(OH)₄^? undergoes an unusual reaction with pyrophosphate at pH ～ 8 to form a novel silver(II) complex, Ag(P₂O₇)₂]^6?, for which EPR and electronic absorption spectral parameters are reported.