Cerocene

Cerocene is a metal organic compound of cerium with the chemical formula Ce(C5H5)3. It is the most unstable of the lanthanocenes in dry air. It, and the other lanthanocenes, is different from cyclopentadiene complexes of general transition metals and is considered to be ionically bonded.

Preparation
Cerocene can be obtained by reacting anhydrous cerium chloride and sodium cyclopentadienide in a tetrahydrofuran medium:


 * 3C5H5Na + CeCl3 → (C5H5)3Ce+ 3 NaCl

Chemical properties
Cerocene decomposes when exposed to water to produce cerium(III) hydroxide and cyclopentadiene.

Related compounds
There are literature reports on the synthesis and properties of the tetravalent cerium compound Ce(C5H5)4, but it has been pointed out that the synthesis method is not credible.