Silver hexafluorophosphate

Last updated
Silver hexafluorophosphate
Silver hexafluorophosphate.png
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ChemSpider
ECHA InfoCard 100.043.101 OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
EC Number
  • 247-428-6
PubChem CID
  • InChI=1S/Ag.F6P/c;1-7(2,3,4,5)6/q+1;-1 Yes check.svgY
    Key: SCQBROMTFBBDHF-UHFFFAOYSA-N Yes check.svgY
  • InChI=1/Ag.F6P/c;1-7(2,3,4,5)6/q+1;-1
    Key: SCQBROMTFBBDHF-UHFFFAOYAC
  • [Ag+].F[P-](F)(F)(F)(F)F
Properties
AgPF6
Molar mass 252.83 g/mol
AppearanceOff-white powder
Melting point 102 °C (216 °F; 375 K)
Solubility soluble in organic solvents
Hazards
GHS labelling:
GHS-pictogram-acid.svg
Danger
H314
P260, P264, P280, P301+P330+P331, P303+P361+P353, P304+P340, P305+P351+P338, P310, P321, P363, P405, P501
NFPA 704 (fire diamond)
NFPA 704.svgHealth 3: Short exposure could cause serious temporary or residual injury. E.g. chlorine 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
3
0
0
Safety data sheet (SDS) External MSDS
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
X mark.svgN  verify  (what is  Yes check.svgYX mark.svgN ?)

Silver hexafluorophosphate, sometimes referred to "silver PF-6," is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula AgPF6.

Contents

Uses and reactions

Silver hexafluorophosphate is a commonly encountered reagent in inorganic and organometallic chemistry. It is commonly used to replace halide ligands with the weakly coordinating hexafluorophosphate anion; abstraction of the halide is driven by the precipitation of the appropriate silver halide. Illustrative is the preparation of acetonitrile complexes from a metal bromide, a reaction that would typically be conducted in a solution of acetonitrile:

AgPF6 + Re(CO)5Br + CH3CN → AgBr + [Re(CO)5(CH3CN)]PF6

Ligands with tightly-bound halide atoms coordinate the silver, but do not themselves decompose: [1]

AgPF6 + 2  XeF2  → [Ag(XeF2)2]PF6.

AgPF6 can act as an oxidant, forming silver metal as a by-product. For example, in solution in dichloromethane, ferrocene is oxidised to ferrocenium hexafluorophosphate: [2]

AgPF6 + Fe(C5H5)2 → Ag + [Fe(C5H5)2]PF6 (E = 0.65 V)

In terms of their properties and applications, silver tetrafluoroborate (AgBF4) and the hexafluoroantimonate (AgSbF6) are similar to AgPF6.

Comparison with silver nitrate

Silver nitrate is a traditional and less expensive halide abstraction reagent, as indicated by its widespread use in qualitative tests for halides.

Relative to AgPF6, however, silver nitrate is poorly soluble in weakly basic solvents: the nitrate anion is Lewis basic and presents an interfering ligand that precludes its use in stringent applications.

References

  1. Grochala, Wojciech (Oct 2007) [12 April 2007]. "Atypical compounds of gases, which have been called 'noble'". Chemical Society Reviews. 36 (10). Royal Society of Chemistry: 1640. doi:10.1039/b702109g via CiteSeerX.
  2. Connelly, N. G.; Geiger, W. E. (1996). "Chemical Redox Agents for Organometallic Chemistry". Chem. Rev. 96 (2): 877–922. doi:10.1021/cr940053x. PMID   11848774.