Xenon trioxide

Last updated
Xenon trioxide
Xenon-trioxide-2D.png
Xenon-trioxide-3D-vdW.png
Names
IUPAC names
Xenon trioxide
Xenon(VI) oxide
Other names
Xenic anhydride
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ChemSpider
UNII
  • InChI=1S/O3Xe/c1-4(2)3 Yes check.svgY
    Key: ZWAWYSBJNBVQHP-UHFFFAOYSA-N Yes check.svgY
  • InChI=1/O3Xe/c1-4(2)3
    Key: ZWAWYSBJNBVQHP-UHFFFAOYAR
  • [O-] [Xe+3]([O-])[O-]
Properties
XeO3
Molar mass 179.288 g/mol
Appearancecolourless crystalline solid
Density 4.55 g/cm3, solid
Melting point 25 °C (77 °F; 298 K) Violent decomposition
Soluble (with reaction)
Structure
trigonal pyramidal (C3v)
Thermochemistry
402 kJ·mol−1 [1]
Hazards
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 4: Readily capable of detonation or explosive decomposition at normal temperatures and pressures. E.g. nitroglycerinSpecial hazard OX: Oxidizer. E.g. potassium perchlorate
4
0
4
OX
Related compounds
Related compounds
Xenon tetroxide
Xenic acid
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 ?)

Xenon trioxide is an unstable compound of xenon in its +6 oxidation state. It is a very powerful oxidizing agent, and liberates oxygen from water slowly, accelerated by exposure to sunlight. It is dangerously explosive upon contact with organic materials. When it detonates, it releases xenon and oxygen gas.

Contents

Chemistry

Synthesis of xenon trioxide is by aqueous hydrolysis of XeF
6
: [2]

XeF
6
+ 3 H
2
O
XeO
3
+ 6 HF

The resulting xenon trioxide crystals are a strong oxidising agent and can oxidise most substances that are at all oxidisable. However, it is slow-acting and this reduces its usefulness. [3]

Above 25 °C, xenon trioxide is very prone to violent explosion:

2 XeO3 → 2 Xe + 3 O2 Hf = −403  kJ/mol)

When it dissolves in water, an acidic solution of xenic acid is formed:

XeO3(aq) + H2O → H2XeO4 H+ + HXeO
4

This solution is stable at room temperature and lacks the explosive properties of xenon trioxide. It oxidises carboxylic acids quantitatively to carbon dioxide and water. [4]

Alternatively, it dissolves in alkaline solutions to form xenates. The HXeO
4
anion is the predominant species in xenate solutions. [5] These are not stable and begin to disproportionate into perxenates (+8 oxidation state) and xenon and oxygen gas. [6] Solid perxenates containing XeO4−
6
have been isolated by reacting XeO
3
with an aqueous solution of hydroxides. Xenon trioxide reacts with inorganic fluorides such as KF, RbF, or CsF to form stable solids of the form MXeO
3
F
. [7]

Physical properties

Hydrolysis of xenon hexafluoride or xenon tetrafluoride yields a solution from which colorless XeO3 crystals can be obtained by evaporation. [2] The crystals are stable for days in dry air, but readily absorb water from humid air to form a concentrated solution. The crystal structure is orthorhombic with a = 6.163 Å, b = 8.115 Å, c = 5.234 Å, and 4 molecules per unit cell. The density is 4.55 g/cm3. [8]

Xenon-trioxide-xtal-1963-3D-balls.png Xenon-trioxide-xtal-1963-3D-SF.png Xenon-trioxide-xtal-1963-Xe-coordination-3D-balls.png
ball-and-stick model of part of
the crystal structure of XeO3
space-filling model coordination geometry of XeO3

Safety

XeO3 should be handled with great caution. Samples have detonated when undisturbed at room temperature. Dry crystals react explosively with cellulose. [8] [9]

Related Research Articles

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

Hydroxide is a diatomic anion with chemical formula OH. It consists of an oxygen and hydrogen atom held together by a single covalent bond, and carries a negative electric charge. It is an important but usually minor constituent of water. It functions as a base, a ligand, a nucleophile, and a catalyst. The hydroxide ion forms salts, some of which dissociate in aqueous solution, liberating solvated hydroxide ions. Sodium hydroxide is a multi-million-ton per annum commodity chemical. The corresponding electrically neutral compound HO is the hydroxyl radical. The corresponding covalently bound group –OH of atoms is the hydroxy group. Both the hydroxide ion and hydroxy group are nucleophiles and can act as catalysts in organic chemistry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perchloric acid</span> Chemical compound

Perchloric acid is a mineral acid with the formula HClO4. Usually found as an aqueous solution, this colorless compound is a stronger acid than sulfuric acid, nitric acid and hydrochloric acid. It is a powerful oxidizer when hot, but aqueous solutions up to approximately 70% by weight at room temperature are generally safe, only showing strong acid features and no oxidizing properties. Perchloric acid is useful for preparing perchlorate salts, especially ammonium perchlorate, an important rocket fuel component. Perchloric acid is dangerously corrosive and readily forms potentially explosive mixtures.

Chromic acid is an inorganic acid composed of the elements chromium, oxygen, and hydrogen. It is a dark, purplish red, odorless, sand-like solid powder. When dissolved in water, it is a strong acid. There are 2 types of chromic acid: molecular chromic acid with the formula H
2
CrO
4
and dichromic acid with the formula H
2
Cr
2
O
7
.

An oxyanion, or oxoanion, is an ion with the generic formula A
x
Oz
y
. Oxyanions are formed by a large majority of the chemical elements. The formulae of simple oxyanions are determined by the octet rule. The corresponding oxyacid of an oxyanion is the compound H
z
A
x
O
y
. The structures of condensed oxyanions can be rationalized in terms of AOn polyhedral units with sharing of corners or edges between polyhedra. The oxyanions adenosine monophosphate (AMP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) are important in biology.

In chemistry, noble gas compounds are chemical compounds that include an element from the noble gases, group 18 of the periodic table. Although the noble gases are generally unreactive elements, many such compounds have been observed, particularly involving the element xenon.

In chemistry, perxenates are salts of the yellow xenon-containing anion XeO4−
6
. This anion has octahedral molecular geometry, as determined by Raman spectroscopy, having O–Xe–O bond angles varying between 87° and 93°. The Xe–O bond length was determined by X-ray crystallography to be 1.875 Å.

Xenon tetroxide is a chemical compound of xenon and oxygen with molecular formula XeO4, remarkable for being a relatively stable compound of a noble gas. It is a yellow crystalline solid that is stable below −35.9 °C; above that temperature it is very prone to exploding and decomposing into elemental xenon and oxygen (O2).

Selenic acid is the inorganic compound with the formula H2SeO4. It is an oxoacid of selenium, and its structure is more accurately described as O2Se(OH)2. It is a colorless compound. Although it has few uses, one of its salts, sodium selenate is used in the production of glass and animal feeds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Telluric acid</span> Chemical compound (Te(OH)6)

Telluric acid, or more accurately Orthotelluric acid, is a chemical compound with the formula Te(OH)6, often written as H6TeO6. It is a white crystalline solid made up of octahedral Te(OH)6 molecules which persist in aqueous solution. In the solid state, there are two forms, rhombohedral and monoclinic, and both contain octahedral Te(OH)6 molecules, containing one hexavalent tellurium (Te) atom in the +6 oxidation state, attached to six hydroxyl (–OH) groups, thus, it can be called tellurium(VI) hydroxide. Telluric acid is a weak acid which is dibasic, forming tellurate salts with strong bases and hydrogen tellurate salts with weaker bases or upon hydrolysis of tellurates in water. It is used as tellurium-source in the synthesis of oxidation catalysts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xenon tetrafluoride</span> Chemical compound

Xenon tetrafluoride is a chemical compound with chemical formula XeF
4
. It was the first discovered binary compound of a noble gas. It is produced by the chemical reaction of xenon with fluorine:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xenon hexafluoride</span> Chemical compound

Xenon hexafluoride is a noble gas compound with the formula XeF6. It is one of the three binary fluorides of xenon that have been studied experimentally, the other two being XeF2 and XeF4. All known are exergonic and stable at normal temperatures. XeF6 is the strongest fluorinating agent of the series. It is a colorless solid that readily sublimes into intensely yellow vapors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manganese heptoxide</span> Chemical compound

Manganese(VII) oxide (manganese heptoxide) is an inorganic compound with the formula Mn2O7. This volatile liquid is highly reactive. It is a dangerous oxidizer and was first described in 1860. It is the acid anhydride of permanganic acid.

Xenic acid is a proposed noble gas compound with the chemical formula H2XeO4 or XeO2(OH)2. It has not been isolated, and the published characterization data are ambiguous.

Selenium trioxide is the inorganic compound with the formula SeO3. It is white, hygroscopic solid. It is also an oxidizing agent and a Lewis acid. It is of academic interest as a precursor to Se(VI) compounds.

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

Gold compounds are compounds by the element gold (Au). Although gold is the most noble of the noble metals, it still forms many diverse compounds. The oxidation state of gold in its compounds ranges from −1 to +5, but Au(I) and Au(III) dominate its chemistry. Au(I), referred to as the aurous ion, is the most common oxidation state with soft ligands such as thioethers, thiolates, and organophosphines. Au(I) compounds are typically linear. A good example is Au(CN)−2, which is the soluble form of gold encountered in mining. The binary gold halides, such as AuCl, form zigzag polymeric chains, again featuring linear coordination at Au. Most drugs based on gold are Au(I) derivatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Selenium compounds</span> Chemical compounds containing selenium

Selenium compounds commonly exist in the oxidation states −2, +2, +4, and +6.

Bromine compounds are compounds containing the element bromine (Br). These compounds usually form the -1, +1, +3 and +5 oxidation states. Bromine is intermediate in reactivity between chlorine and iodine, and is one of the most reactive elements. Bond energies to bromine tend to be lower than those to chlorine but higher than those to iodine, and bromine is a weaker oxidising agent than chlorine but a stronger one than iodine. This can be seen from the standard electrode potentials of the X2/X couples (F, +2.866 V; Cl, +1.395 V; Br, +1.087 V; I, +0.615 V; At, approximately +0.3 V). Bromination often leads to higher oxidation states than iodination but lower or equal oxidation states to chlorination. Bromine tends to react with compounds including M–M, M–H, or M–C bonds to form M–Br bonds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monosodium xenate</span> Chemical compound

Monosodium xenate is the sodium salt of xenic acid with formula NaHXeO4. It is a powerful oxidizer, owing to being a highly reactive compound of xenon.

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

Radon compounds are compounds formed by the element radon (Rn). Radon is a member of the zero-valence elements that are called noble gases, and is chemically not very reactive. The 3.8-day half-life of radon-222 makes it useful in physical sciences as a natural tracer. Because radon is a gas at standard conditions, unlike its decay-chain parents, it can readily be extracted from them for research.

Neptunium compounds are compounds containg the element neptunium (Np). Neptunium has five ionic oxidation states ranging from +3 to +7 when forming chemical compounds, which can be simultaneously observed in solutions. It is the heaviest actinide that can lose all its valence electrons in a stable compound. The most stable state in solution is +5, but the valence +4 is preferred in solid neptunium compounds. Neptunium metal is very reactive. Ions of neptunium are prone to hydrolysis and formation of coordination compounds.

References

  1. Zumdahl, Steven S. (2009). Chemical Principles 6th Ed. Houghton Mifflin Company. p. A23. ISBN   978-0-618-94690-7.
  2. 1 2 John H. Holloway; Eric G. Hope (1998). A. G. Sykes (ed.). Recent Advances in Noble-gas Chemistry. Advances in Inorganic Chemistry, Volume 46. Academic Press. p. 65. ISBN   0-12-023646-X.
  3. Greenwood, N.; Earnshaw, A. (1997). Chemistry of the Elements. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
  4. Jaselskis B.; Krueger R. H. (July 1966). "Titrimetric determination of some organic acids by xenon trioxide oxidation". Talanta. 13 (7): 945–949. doi:10.1016/0039-9140(66)80192-3. PMID   18959958.
  5. Peterson, J. L.; Claassen, H. H.; Appelman, E. H. (March 1970). "Vibrational spectra and structures of xenate(VI) and perxenate(VIII) ions in aqueous solution". Inorganic Chemistry. 9 (3): 619–621. doi:10.1021/ic50085a037.
  6. W. Henderson (2000). Main group chemistry . Great Britain: Royal Society of Chemistry. pp.  152–153. ISBN   0-85404-617-8.
  7. Egon Wiberg; Nils Wiberg; Arnold Frederick Holleman (2001). Inorganic chemistry. Academic Press. p. 399. ISBN   0-12-352651-5.
  8. 1 2 Templeton, D. H.; Zalkin, A.; Forrester, J. D.; Williamson, S. M. (1963). "Crystal and Molecular Structure of Xenon Trioxide". Journal of the American Chemical Society. 85 (6): 817. doi:10.1021/ja00889a037.
  9. Bartlett, N.; Rao, P. R. (1963). "Xenon Hydroxide: an Experimental Hazard". Science. 139 (3554): 506. Bibcode:1963Sci...139..506B. doi:10.1126/science.139.3554.506. PMID   17843880.