Fun with vanadium oxides

In my latest podcast for the RSC's Chemistry in its Element series I take a look at the assorted oxides of vanadium.

Vanadium, the transition metal at number 23 on the periodic table, is one of those elements that sounds more like something out of a superhero movie than a real substance. You might expect that vanadium oxide would be of vanishingly small interest, but the reality is different. I should really have said the vanadium oxides, because thanks to vanadium’s five valence electrons there are enough oxides to sound like a successful Hollywood franchise – vanadium (II) oxide, VO, vanadium (III) oxide, V₂O₃, vanadium (IV) oxide, VO₂ and vanadium (V) oxide, V₂O₅, without going into extra intermediate phases that can produce entertaining combos like V₆O₁₃ and V₈O₁₅.

Also like those Hollywood franchises, some instalments are more interesting than others, as you'll discover by taking a listen...

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