d-BLOCK ELEMENTS II

FORMATION OF COMPLEX IONS

Monodentate ligands
 Examples of monodentate ligands and formation of coordinate bonds
with metal ions.

Ammonia is a monodentate ion.

POLYDENTATE LIGANDS

BIDENTATE LIGAND eg Ethylenediamine (en)

TRIDENTATE LIGANDS eg DIETHYLENETRIAMINE ( dien )

A tridentate ligand forms three coordinate bonds with a metal ion.

TETRADENTATE LIGANDS eg tetraethylenetetraamine ( trine )

A tetradentate ligand forms 4 coordinate bonds with a metal ion

HEXADENTATE LIGANDS eg
A hexadentate ligand forms 6 coordinate bonds with the metal ion.

eg. First dissolve some copper(II) sulphate crystals in water.

Now add some potassium chloride into the blue tetraaquacopper(II) ion complex solution. Water
ligand in tetraaquacopper(II) ion is displaced by the stronger chloride ion to form the yellowish green
tetrachlorocopper(II) ion complex.
Chloride ligand in tetrachlorocopper (II) ion is displaced by the stronger ammonia ligand to form the
dark blue tetraamminocopper(II) ion complex when a few drops of concentrated ammonia is added to
the yellow greenish tetrachlorocopper(II) ion complex solution.
COORDINATION NUMBER 2 : eg diamminosilver(I) ,