Mercury sulfide

Last updated
Mercury sulfide
Mercury(II) sulfide.jpg
Names
IUPAC name
Mercury sulfide
Other names
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ECHA InfoCard 100.014.270 OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
EC Number
  • 215-696-3
PubChem CID
UNII
UN number 2025
  • InChI=1S/Hg.S
    Key: QXKXDIKCIPXUPL-UHFFFAOYSA-N
  • [S]=[Hg]
Properties
HgS
Molar mass 232.66 g/mol
Density 8.10 g/cm3
Melting point 580 °C (1,076 °F; 853 K) decomposes
insoluble
Band gap 2.1 eV (direct, α-HgS) [1]
−55.4·10−6 cm3/mol
w=2.905, e=3.256, bire=0.3510 (α-HgS) [2]
Thermochemistry
Std molar
entropy
(S298)
78 J·mol−1·K−1 [3]
−58 kJ·mol−1 [3]
Hazards
GHS labelling:
GHS-pictogram-skull.svg GHS-pictogram-exclam.svg GHS-pictogram-silhouette.svg GHS-pictogram-pollu.svg
Danger
H300, H310, H317, H330, H373, H410
P261, P272, P280, P302+P352, P321, P333+P313, P363, P501
NFPA 704 (fire diamond)
NFPA 704.svgHealth 4: Very short exposure could cause death or major residual injury. E.g. VX gasFlammability 0: Will not burn. E.g. waterInstability 0: Normally stable, even under fire exposure conditions, and is not reactive with water. E.g. liquid nitrogenSpecial hazards (white): no code
4
0
0
Flash point Non-flammable
Safety data sheet (SDS) Fisher Scientific
Related compounds
Other anions
Mercury oxide
mercury selenide
mercury telluride
Other cations
Zinc sulfide
cadmium sulfide
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Mercury sulfide, or mercury(II) sulfide is a chemical compound composed of the chemical elements mercury and sulfur. It is represented by the chemical formula HgS. It is virtually insoluble in water. [4]

Contents

Crystal structure

Structure of a-HgS looking at the a-axis HgS-alpha-cinnabar-xtal-1999-looking-down-a-axis-CM-3D-balls.png
Structure of a-HgS looking at the a-axis
Structure of a-HgS looking at the c-axis HgS-alpha-cinnabar-xtal-1999-looking-down-c-axis-CM-3D-balls.png
Structure of a-HgS looking at the c-axis

HgS is dimorphic with two crystal forms:

Preparation and chemistry

β-HgS precipitates as a black solid when Hg(II) salts are treated with H2S. The reaction is conveniently conducted with an acetic acid solution of mercury(II) acetate. With gentle heating of the slurry, the black polymorph converts to the red form. [6] β-HgS is unreactive to all but concentrated acids. [4]

Mercury is produced from the cinnabar ore by roasting in air and condensing the vapour. [4]

HgS → Hg + S

Uses

Cinnabar (red portion of specimen) from Nevada, US. Cinnabar09.jpg
Cinnabar (red portion of specimen) from Nevada, US.

When α-HgS is used as a red pigment, it is known as cinnabar. The tendency of cinnabar to darken has been ascribed to conversion from red α-HgS to black β-HgS. However β-HgS was not detected at excavations in Pompeii, where originally red walls darkened, and was attributed to the formation of Hg-Cl compounds (e.g., corderoite, calomel, and terlinguaite) and calcium sulfate, gypsum. [7]

As the mercury cell as used in the chlor-alkali industry (Castner–Kellner process) is being phased out over concerns over mercury emissions, the metallic mercury from these setups is converted into mercury sulfide for underground storage.

With a band gap of 2.1 eV and its stability, it is possible to be used as photoelectrochemical cell. [8]

Neutralization with sulfur has been suggested to clean mercury spills, but the reaction does not proceed rapidly and completely enough for emergencies. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cinnabar</span> Red mercury(II) sulfide mineral, HgS

Cinnabar, or cinnabarite, also known as mercurblende is the bright scarlet to brick-red form of mercury(II) sulfide (HgS). It is the most common source ore for refining elemental mercury and is the historic source for the brilliant red or scarlet pigment termed vermilion and associated red mercury pigments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silver sulfide</span> Chemical compound

Silver sulfide is an inorganic compound with the formula Ag
2
S
. A dense black solid, it is the only sulfide of silver. It is useful as a photosensitizer in photography. It constitutes the tarnish that forms over time on silverware and other silver objects. Silver sulfide is insoluble in most solvents, but is degraded by strong acids. Silver sulfide is a network solid made up of silver and sulfur where the bonds have low ionic character.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zinc sulfide</span> Inorganic compound

Zinc sulfide is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula of ZnS. This is the main form of zinc found in nature, where it mainly occurs as the mineral sphalerite. Although this mineral is usually black because of various impurities, the pure material is white, and it is widely used as a pigment. In its dense synthetic form, zinc sulfide can be transparent, and it is used as a window for visible optics and infrared optics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cadmium sulfide</span> Chemical compound

Cadmium sulfide is the inorganic compound with the formula CdS. Cadmium sulfide is a yellow salt. It occurs in nature with two different crystal structures as the rare minerals greenockite and hawleyite, but is more prevalent as an impurity substituent in the similarly structured zinc ores sphalerite and wurtzite, which are the major economic sources of cadmium. As a compound that is easy to isolate and purify, it is the principal source of cadmium for all commercial applications. Its vivid yellow color led to its adoption as a pigment for the yellow paint "cadmium yellow" in the 1800s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lead(II) sulfide</span> Chemical compound

Lead(II) sulfide is an inorganic compound with the formula PbS. Galena is the principal ore and the most important compound of lead. It is a semiconducting material with niche uses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury(II) oxide</span> Chemical compound

Mercury(II) oxide, also called mercuric oxide or simply mercury oxide, is the inorganic compound with the formula HgO. It has a red or orange color. Mercury(II) oxide is a solid at room temperature and pressure. The mineral form montroydite is very rarely found.

Sulfur compounds are chemical compounds formed the element sulfur (S). Common oxidation states of sulfur range from −2 to +6. Sulfur forms stable compounds with all elements except the noble gases.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury(II) sulfate</span> Chemical compound

Mercury(II) sulfate, commonly called mercuric sulfate, is the chemical compound HgSO4. It is an odorless salt that forms white granules or crystalline powder. In water, it separates into an insoluble basic sulfate with a yellow color and sulfuric acid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury(II) acetate</span> Chemical compound

Mercury(II) acetate, also known as mercuric acetate is a chemical compound, the mercury(II) salt of acetic acid, with the formula Hg(O2CCH3)2. Commonly abbreviated Hg(OAc)2, this compound is employed as a reagent to generate organomercury compounds from unsaturated organic precursors. It is a white, water-soluble solid, but some samples can appear yellowish with time owing to decomposition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury(II) thiocyanate</span> Chemical compound

Mercury(II) thiocyanate is an inorganic chemical compound, the coordination complex of Hg2+ and the thiocyanate anion. It is a white powder. It will produce a large, winding "snake" when ignited, an effect known as the Pharaoh's serpent.

Indium(III) sulfide (Indium sesquisulfide, Indium sulfide (2:3), Indium (3+) sulfide) is the inorganic compound with the formula In2S3.

Samarium(III) sulfide (Sm2S3) is a chemical compound of the rare earth element samarium, and sulfur. In this compound samarium is in the +3 oxidation state, and sulfur is an anion in the −2 state.

Mercury(I) sulfide or mercurous sulfide is a hypothetical chemical compound of mercury and sulfur, with elemental formula Hg
2
S
. Its existence has been disputed; it may be stable below 0 °C or in suitable environments, but is unstable at room temperature, decomposing into metallic mercury and mercury(II) sulfide.

The indium chalcogenides include all compounds of indium with the chalcogen elements, oxygen, sulfur, selenium and tellurium. (Polonium is excluded as little is known about its compounds with indium). The best-characterised compounds are the In(III) and In(II) chalcogenides e.g. the sulfides In2S3 and InS.
This group of compounds has attracted a lot of research attention because they include semiconductors, photovoltaics and phase-change materials. In many applications indium chalcogenides are used as the basis of ternary and quaternary compounds such as indium tin oxide, ITO and copper indium gallium selenide, CIGS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allotropes of sulfur</span> Class of substances

The element sulfur exists as many allotropes. In number of allotropes, sulfur is second only to carbon. In addition to the allotropes, each allotrope often exists in polymorphs delineated by Greek prefixes.

Tin(II) sulfide is a chemical compound of tin and sulfur. The chemical formula is SnS. Its natural occurrence concerns herzenbergite (α-SnS), a rare mineral. At elevated temperatures above 905 K, SnS undergoes a second order phase transition to β-SnS (space group: Cmcm, No. 63). In recent years, it has become evident that a new polymorph of SnS exists based upon the cubic crystal system, known as π-SnS (space group: P213, No. 198).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gallium(III) sulfide</span> Chemical compound

Gallium(III) sulfide, Ga2S3, is a compound of sulfur and gallium, that is a semiconductor that has applications in electronics and photonics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cerium(III) sulfide</span> Chemical compound

Cerium(III) sulfide, also known as cerium sesquisulfide, is an inorganic compound with the formula Ce2S3. It is the sulfide salt of cerium(III) and exists as three polymorphs with different crystal structures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chromium(II) sulfide</span> Chemical compound

Chromium(II) sulfide is an inorganic compound of chromium and sulfur with the chemical formula CrS. The compound forms black hexagonal crystals, insoluble in water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edoylerite</span>

Edoylerite is a rare mercury-containing mineral. Edoylerite was first discovered in 1961 by Edward H. Oyler, whom the mineral is named after, in a meter-sized boulder at the Clear Creek claim in San Benito County, California. The Clear Creek claim is located near the abandoned Clear Creek mercury mine. The material from the boulder underwent several analyses including, X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), a single crystal study, and a preliminary electron microprobe analysis (EMA). Using these analyses it was determined that this was a new mineral but the nature of the material at the time prevented further investigation. It was not until 1986, with the discovery of crystals large enough for a crystal structure determination and a sufficient quantity for a full mineralogical characterization, that the study was renewed. The new edoylerite crystals were found in the same area at the Clear Creek claim but were situated in an outcrop of silica-carbonate rock. This silica-carbonate rock was mineralized by cinnabar following the hydrothermal alteration of the serpentinite in the rock. Edoylerite is a primary alteration product of cinnabar. Though found with cinnabar, the crystals of edoylerite do not typically exceed 0.5mm in length. The ideal chemical formula for edoylerite is Hg32+Cr6+O4S2

References

  1. L. I. Berger, Semiconductor Materials (1997) CRC Press ISBN   0-8493-8912-7
  2. Webminerals
  3. 1 2 Zumdahl, Steven S. (2009). Chemical Principles 6th Ed. Houghton Mifflin Company. p. A22. ISBN   978-0-618-94690-7.
  4. 1 2 3 Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1984). Chemistry of the Elements. Oxford: Pergamon Press. p. 1406. ISBN   978-0-08-022057-4.
  5. A. M. Glazer, K. Stadnicka (1986). "On the origin of optical activity in crystal structures". J. Appl. Crystallogr. 19 (2): 108–122. doi:10.1107/S0021889886089823. S2CID   96545158.
  6. Newell, Lyman C.; Maxson, R. N.; Filson, M. H. (1939). "Red Mercuric Sulfide". Inorganic Syntheses. Vol. 1. pp. 19–20. doi:10.1002/9780470132326.ch7. ISBN   9780470132326.
  7. Cotte, M; Susini J; Metrich N; Moscato A; Gratziu C; Bertagnini A; Pagano M (2006). "Blackening of Pompeian Cinnabar Paintings: X-ray Microspectroscopy Analysis". Anal. Chem. 78 (21): 7484–7492. doi:10.1021/ac0612224. PMID   17073416.
  8. Davidson, R. S.; Willsher, C. J. (March 1979). "Mercury(II) sulphide: a photo-stable semiconductor". Nature. 278 (5701): 238–239. doi:10.1038/278238a0. ISSN   1476-4687. S2CID   4363745.
  9. Hegedüs, Kristof (20 Dec 2014). "How NOT to clean up mercury..." Pictures from an Organic Chemistry Laboratory. Tumblr. Archived from the original on 11 Nov 2020. Retrieved 4 January 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)