Ammonium hydrosulfide

Ammonium hydrosulfide
IUPAC name ammonium hydrosulfide
Other names ammonium bisulfide ammonium hydrogen sulfide
Identifiers
CAS number	12124-99-1 Y
ChemSpider	23805 Y
RTECS number	BS4900000
Jmol-3D images	Image 1
SMILES [SH-].[NH4+]
InChI InChI=1S/H3N.H2S/h1H3;1H2 Y Key: HIVLDXAAFGCOFU-UHFFFAOYSA-N Y InChI=1/H3N.H2S/h1H3;1H2 Key: HIVLDXAAFGCOFU-UHFFFAOYAU
Properties
Molecular formula	H5NS
Molar mass	51.111 g/mol
Appearance	Yellow-orange fuming liquid.
Density	1.17 g/cm3[1]
Solubility in water	Infinitely soluble
Solubility	soluble in alcohol, liquid ammonia, liquid hydrogen sulfide; insoluble in benzene, hexane and ether
Refractive index (nD)	1.74
Hazards
R-phrases	R11, R23, R24, R25.
Main hazards	Toxic
NFPA 704	3 3 0
LD50	168 mg/kg (rat, oral)[2]
Related compounds
Other anions	Ammonium sulfate
Other cations	Sodium hydrosulfide
Y hydrosulfide (verify) (what is: Y/N?) Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa)
Infobox references

Ammonium hydrosulfide is the chemical compound with the formula (NH₄)SH. It is the salt derived from the ammonium cation and the hydrosulfide anion. The salt exists as colourless, water soluble, micaceous crystals. The compound is encountered mainly as a solution, not as the solid. It is generated by mixing hydrogen sulfide and ammonia.

Preparation

Solutions of ammonium hydrosulfide can be prepared by passing hydrogen sulfide gas through concentrated ammonia solution.^[3] According to a detailed 1895 report, hydrogen sulfide reacts with concentrated aqueous ammonia solution at room temperature to give (NH₄)₂S·2NH₄HS. When this species is cooled to 0 °C and treated with additional hydrogen sulfide, one obtains (NH₄)₂S·12NH₄HS.^[4] An ice-cold solution of this substance kept at 0°C and having hydrogen sulfide continually passed through it gives the hydrosulfide.

The common "stink bomb" consists of an aqueous solution of ammonium sulfide. The mixture easily converts to ammonia and hydrogen sulfide gases. This conversion illustrates the ease of the following equilibrium:

(NH₄)SH$\overrightarrow{\leftarrow}$ NH₃ + H₂S

Both ammonia and hydrogen sulfide have a powerfully unpleasant smell.

References

1. ^ Pradyot Patnaik. Handbook of Inorganic Chemicals. McGraw-Hill, 2002, ISBN 0-07-049439-8
2. ^ Record of ammonium hydrosulfide in the GESTIS Substance Database from the IFA, accessed on October 22, 2010
3. ^ Goodman, J. T.; Rauchfuss, T. B., (2002). "Tetraethylammonium-tetrathioperrhenate [Et₄N][ReS₄]". Inorganic Syntheses 33: 107–110. 
4. ^ W. P. Bloxam (1895). "The Sulphides and Polysulphides of Ammonium". J. Chem. Soc., Trans. 67: 283. doi:10.1039/CT8956700277.