Tetrameric Lanthanide‐Substituted Silicotungstate {Ln8Si4W40} Nanoclusters: Synthesis, Structural Characterization, Electrochemistry, and Catalytic Application for Oxidation of Thioethers

Abstract All the title nanoclusters 1 – 10 with the molecular formula [(Ln 2 SiW 10 O 38 ) 4 (W 3 O 8 )(OH) 4 (H 2 O) 2 ] 26− [Ln III =Sm ( 1 ), Eu ( 2 ), Gd ( 3 ), Tb ( 4 ), Dy ( 5 ), Ho ( 6 ), Er ( 7 ), Tm ( 8 ), Yb ( 9 ), and Y ( 10 )] have been synthesized and isolated as mixed sodium and potassium salts. These nanoclusters are characterized by various analytical techniques such as FT‐IR, UV/Vis, Photoluminescence, Single crystal X‐ray diffraction, Electrochemistry, ICP‐AES and Thermogravimetric analysis, and Powder X‐ray diffraction. The {Ln 8 Si 4 W 40 } complexes show high efficiency and selectivity for the oxidation of thioethers using H 2 O 2 as green oxidant. It is worth mentioning that the catalyst can be recovered even after five cycles of reaction with only a slight loss in its activity.