Aluminium is a chemical element; it has symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than that of other common metals; about one-third that of steel. It has a great affinity towards oxygen, forming a protective layer of oxide on the surface when exposed to air. Aluminium visually resembles silver, both in its color and in its great ability to reflect light. It is soft, nonmagnetic and ductile. It has one stable isotope: 27Al, which is highly abundant, making aluminium the twelfth-most common element in the universe. The radioactivity of 26Al is used in radiometric dating.
In chemistry, a hydride is formally the anion of hydrogen (H−), a hydrogen atom with two electrons. The term is applied loosely. At one extreme, all compounds containing covalently bound H atoms are called hydrides: water (H2O) is a hydride of oxygen, ammonia is a hydride of nitrogen, etc. For inorganic chemists, hydrides refer to compounds and ions in which hydrogen is covalently attached to a less electronegative element. In such cases, the H centre has nucleophilic character, which contrasts with the protic character of acids. The hydride anion is very rarely observed.
The boron group are the chemical elements in group 13 of the periodic table, consisting of boron (B), aluminium (Al), gallium (Ga), indium (In), thallium (Tl) and nihonium (Nh). This group lies in the p-block of the periodic table. The elements in the boron group are characterized by having three valence electrons. These elements have also been referred to as the triels.
In chemistry, a nitride is an inorganic compound of nitrogen. The "nitride" anion, N3- ion, is very elusive but compounds of nitride are numerous, although rarely naturally occurring. Some nitrides have a found applications, such as wear-resistant coatings (e.g., titanium nitride, TiN), hard ceramic materials (e.g., silicon nitride, Si3N4), and semiconductors (e.g., gallium nitride, GaN). The development of GaN-based light emitting diodes was recognized by the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics. Metal nitrido complexes are also common.
In chemistry, a trigonal pyramid is a molecular geometry with one atom at the apex and three atoms at the corners of a trigonal base, resembling a tetrahedron (not to be confused with the tetrahedral geometry). When all three atoms at the corners are identical, the molecule belongs to point group C3v. Some molecules and ions with trigonal pyramidal geometry are the pnictogen hydrides (XH3), xenon trioxide (XeO3), the chlorate ion, ClO−
3, and the sulfite ion, SO2−
3. In organic chemistry, molecules which have a trigonal pyramidal geometry are sometimes described as sp3 hybridized. The AXE method for VSEPR theory states that the classification is AX3E1.
Tetraborane was the first boron hydride compound to be discovered. It was classified by Alfred Stock and Carl Massenez in 1912 and was first isolated by Stock. It has a relatively low boiling point at 18 °C and is a gas at room temperature. Tetraborane gas is foul smelling and toxic.
Gallium hydroxide is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula Ga(OH)3. It is formed as a gel following the addition of ammonia to Ga3+ salts. It is also found in nature as the rare mineral söhngeite which is reported to contain octahedrally coordinated gallium atoms. Gallium hydroxide is amphoteric. In strongly acidic conditions, the gallium ion, Ga3+ is formed. In strongly basic conditions, [Ga(OH)4]− (tetrahydroxogallate(III)) is formed. Salts of [Ga(OH)4]− are sometimes called gallates.
Borderline hydrides typically refer to hydrides formed of hydrogen and elements of the periodic table in group 11 and group 12 and indium (In) and thallium (Tl). These compounds have properties intermediate between covalent hydrides and saline hydrides. Hydrides are chemical compounds that contain a metal and hydrogen acting as a negative ion.
Indium(III) chloride is the chemical compound with the formula InCl3 which forms a tetrahydrate. This salt is a white, flaky solid with applications in organic synthesis as a Lewis acid. It is also the most available soluble derivative of indium. This is one of three known indium chlorides.
Gallium(III) bromide (GaBr3) is a chemical compound, and one of four gallium trihalides.
Boron compounds are compounds containing the element boron. In the most familiar compounds, boron has the formal oxidation state +3. These include oxides, sulfides, nitrides, and halides.
Gallium trichloride is the chemical compound with the formula GaCl3. Solid gallium trichloride exists as a dimer with the formula Ga2Cl6. It is colourless and soluble in virtually all solvents, even alkanes, which is truly unusual for a metal halide. It is the main precursor to most derivatives of gallium and a reagent in organic synthesis.
Organogallium chemistry is the chemistry of organometallic compounds containing a carbon to gallium (Ga) chemical bond. Despite their high toxicity, organogallium compounds have some use in organic synthesis. The compound trimethylgallium is of some relevance to MOCVD as a precursor to gallium arsenide via its reaction with arsine at 700 °C:
Gallane, also systematically named trihydridogallium, is an inorganic compound of gallium with the chemical formula GaH
3. It is a photosensitive, colourless gas that cannot be concentrated in pure form. Gallane is both the simplest member of the gallanes, and the prototype of the monogallanes. It has no economic uses, and is only intentionally produced for academic reasons.
Binary compounds of hydrogen are binary chemical compounds containing just hydrogen and one other chemical element. By convention all binary hydrogen compounds are called hydrides even when the hydrogen atom in it is not an anion. These hydrogen compounds can be grouped into several types.
Indium trihydride is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula. It has been observed in matrix isolation and laser ablation experiments. Gas phase stability has been predicted. The infrared spectrum was obtained in the gas phase by laser ablation of indium in presence of hydrogen gas InH3 is of no practical importance.
Indium(III) hydroxide is the chemical compound with the formula In(OH)3. Its prime use is as a precursor to indium(III) oxide, In2O3. It is sometimes found as the rare mineral dzhalindite.
Aluminium (or aluminum) combines characteristics of pre- and post-transition metals. Since it has few available electrons for metallic bonding, like its heavier group 13 congeners, it has the characteristic physical properties of a post-transition metal, with longer-than-expected interatomic distances. Furthermore, as Al3+ is a small and highly charged cation, it is strongly polarizing and aluminium compounds tend towards covalency; this behaviour is similar to that of beryllium (Be2+), an example of a diagonal relationship. However, unlike all other post-transition metals, the underlying core under aluminium's valence shell is that of the preceding noble gas, whereas for gallium and indium it is that of the preceding noble gas plus a filled d-subshell, and for thallium and nihonium it is that of the preceding noble gas plus filled d- and f-subshells. Hence, aluminium does not suffer the effects of incomplete shielding of valence electrons by inner electrons from the nucleus that its heavier congeners do. Aluminium's electropositive behavior, high affinity for oxygen, and highly negative standard electrode potential are all more similar to those of scandium, yttrium, lanthanum, and actinium, which have ds2 configurations of three valence electrons outside a noble gas core: aluminium is the most electropositive metal in its group. Aluminium also bears minor similarities to the metalloid boron in the same group; AlX3 compounds are valence isoelectronic to BX3 compounds (they have the same valence electronic structure), and both behave as Lewis acids and readily form adducts. Additionally, one of the main motifs of boron chemistry is regular icosahedral structures, and aluminium forms an important part of many icosahedral quasicrystal alloys, including the Al–Zn–Mg class.
Indium(III) iodide or indium triiodide is a chemical compound of indium and iodine with the formula InI3.
Hydrogen compounds are compounds containg the element hydrogen. In these compounds, hydrogen can form in the +1 and -1 oxidation states. Hydrogen can form compounds both ionically and in covalent substances. It is a part of many organic compounds such as hydrocarbons as well as water and other organic substances. The H+ ion is often called a proton because it has one proton and no electrons, although the proton does not move freely. Brønsted–Lowry acids are capable of donating H+ ions to bases.
