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Updated: Jan 13, 2026

An Aptamer-based Sensor for Unchelated GadoliniumIII
Published on: January 9, 2017
Revisiting Lanthanide Solvation: The "Gadolinium Break" That Does Exist.
Aritra Marick1, Ria Saha1, Soumya Mondal2
1Department of Chemical and Biological Sciences, S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, JD-Block, Sector-III, Salt Lake, Kolkata 700106, India.
Lanthanide(III) ion solvation is nonmonotonic, exhibiting a distinct "Gd break" at gadolinium. This finding is crucial for understanding the environmental impact of heavy cations in technological applications.
Area of Science:
- Inorganic Chemistry
- Physical Chemistry
- Spectroscopy
Background:
- Lanthanides (Ln) possess unique chemical properties, including redox behavior and ligand coordination.
- Trends in lanthanide properties across the series are often nonlinear, with a debated "Gd break" at gadolinium (Gd).
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the solvation behavior of lanthanide(III) ions in dilute solutions.
- To clarify the existence and nature of the "Gd break" in lanthanide solvation.
Main Methods:
- Terahertz (THz) time-domain and frequency-domain spectroscopy.
- Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations.
- Examination of lanthanide(III) chloride solutions (La3+, Nd3+, Gd3+, Ho3+, Lu3+).
Main Results:
- Lanthanide(III) ion solvation is nonmonotonic across the series.
- A distinct break in solvation behavior is observed at gadolinium (Gd).
- Results challenge previous notions of a smooth trend in lanthanide properties.
Conclusions:
- The "Gd break" in lanthanide(III) solvation is confirmed.
- Understanding lanthanide solvation is vital due to increasing environmental exposure of heavy cations.
- This research provides foundational knowledge for assessing the ecological impact of lanthanides.
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