Cerium(III) iodide

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Cerium(III) iodide (CeI3) is a chemical compound made of cerium in the +3 oxidation state and iodide ions. It’s also called tri-iodocerium, cerous triiodide, or cerium triiodide.

How it’s made
- By heating cerium metal with iodine: 2 Ce + 3 I2 → 2 CeI3.
- It can also form when cerium reacts with mercury(II) iodide at high temperatures: 2 Ce + 3 HgI2 → 2 CeI3 + 3 Hg.

Structure
- CeI3 crystallizes in a structure similar to plutonium(III) bromide.
- The cerium(III) ions are eight-coordinate, arranged in a bicapped trigonal prismatic geometry.

Appearance and properties
- Appearance: yellow solid.
- Molar mass: about 520.8 g/mol.
- Melting point: around 750–766 °C.
- Solubility: soluble in water and in acetone.

Uses
- Used as a pharmaceutical intermediate.
- Serves as a starting material for making organocerium compounds.

Formula
- CeI3

Key identifiers
- Also known as cerous triiodide or triiodocerium.