Widely used as a Lewis acid catalyst in organic synthesis, enabling a variety of carbon-carbon and carbon-heteroatom bond-forming reactions. It is particularly effective in promoting glycosylation, aldol condensations, and Friedel-Crafts acylations under mild conditions. Its water tolerance and stability make it suitable for reactions in aqueous or mixed solvent systems. Additionally, it serves as a catalyst in Diels-Alder reactions and can be reused in some cases due to its robustness. The compound is also employed in luminescent materials and as a shift reagent in NMR spectroscopy due to the paramagnetic properties of gadolinium.