Convenient Preparation of Lanthanide Aryloxides from Lanthanide Nitrate Polyether Complexes and the Crystal Structure of [La(OC6H3Me2-2,6)3(MeO(CH2CH2O)4Me)]

Anhydrous lanthanide chlorides, which can be tedious to prepare, are the usual starting materials for the synthesis of lanthanide aryloxides. Here we report on the use of easily prepared lanthanide nitrate polyether complexes in the synthesis of lanthanide 2,6-dimethylphenoxides. The crystal structure of 8-coordinate [La(OC6H3Me2-2,6)3(tetraglyme)] is reported.