Stabilization of hydrated Ac(III) cation: the role of superatom states in actinium-water bonding

(225)Ac-based radiopharmaceuticals have the potential to become invaluable in designated cancer therapy. However, the limited understanding of the solution chemistry and bonding properties of actinium has hindered the development of existing and emerging targeted radiotherapeutics, which also poses a significant challenge in the discovery of new agents. Herein, we report the geometric and electronic structural properties of hydrated Ac(III) cations in the [Ac(III)(H(2)O)(n)](3+) (n = 4–11) complexes in aqueous solution and gas-phase using density functional theory. We found that nine water molecules coordinated to the Ac(III) cation is the most stable complex due to an enhanced hydration Gibbs free energy. This complex adopts a closed-shell 18-electron configuration (1S(2)1P(6)1D(10)) of a superatom state, which indicates a non-negligible covalent character and involves H(2)O → Ac(III) σ donation interaction between s-/p-/d-type atomic orbitals of the Ac atom and 2p atomic orbitals of the O atoms. Furthermore, potentially existing 10-coordinated complexes need to overcome an energy barrier (>0.10 eV) caused by hydrogen bonding to convert to 9-coordination. These results imply the importance of superatom states in actinide chemistry generally, and specifically in Ac(III) solution chemistry, and highlight the conversion mechanism between different coordination numbers.