PNNL

Abstract

Metal atoms typically have second and higher ionization potentials (IPs) that are larger than the IP of water, resulting in the Coulombic explosion of the first few [M(H2O)n]+q (q = 2) clusters as the M+ + (H2O)n + or MOH+ + H3O+(H2O)n energy levels are energetically more stable than the M2+ + (H2O)n ones for small n. We present a theoretical analysis of the various electronic states correlating with the above channels that are involved in the sequential hydration of the Ca2+, Mg2+ and Al3+ cations with up to six water molecules that, for the first time, quantifies their relative shift with the degree of solvation accounting for the observed stabilization of those multi-charged metal cations in an aqueous solution. *