Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-chemistry-course-of-the-year-3-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2021/paper-1/4/b/solution
Past exam of the chemistry course of the year 3 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2021 Paper 1 4 b Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-20
Not as a general aqueous separation reaction for the other lanthanides. Most strongly favour the trivalent state in ordinary water chemistry. Ce(IV) is unusually accessible because it has the empty shell and is strongly stabilized by oxide formation. Some other lanthanides have accessible alternative oxidation states, such as Eu(II), and higher oxides of Pr or Tb can exist under suitable conditions; this does not imply that they undergo the same Ce(III)/Ce(IV) pH-controlled aqueous oxidation.
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