Europium(III) chloride

Europium(III) chloride
IUPAC name Europium(III) chloride Europium trichloride
Identifiers
CAS number	10025-76-0 Y,  13759-92-7 (hexahydrate)
ChemSpider	23194 Y
EC number	233-040-4
RTECS number	LE7525000
Jmol-3D images	Image 1
SMILES Cl[Eu](Cl)Cl
InChI InChI=1S/3ClH.Eu/h3*1H;/q;;;+3/p-3 Y Key: NNMXSTWQJRPBJZ-UHFFFAOYSA-K Y InChI=1/3ClH.Eu/h3*1H;/q;;;+3/p-3 Key: NNMXSTWQJRPBJZ-DFZHHIFOAZ
Properties
Molecular formula	EuCl3
Molar mass	258.32 g/mol 366.41 g/mol (hexahydrate)
Melting point	632 °C decomp.
Solubility in other solvents	Soluble
Related compounds
Related compounds	Europium dichloride
Structure
Crystal structure	hexagonal (UCl3 type), hP8
Space group	P63/m, No. 176
Coordination geometry	Tricapped trigonal prismatic (nine-coordinate)
Y chloride (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

Europium(III) chloride is a compound of europium and chlorine with the formula EuCl₃.

Properties

Europium trichloride is a yellow solid which begins to decompose at or below its melting point to give at least some hygroscopic it rapidly absorbs water on exposure to moist air to form a white crystalline hexahydrate, EuCl₃·6H₂O. Simple rapid heating of the hydrate alone may cause small amounts of hydrolysis. Anhydrous EuCl₃ can be made from the hydrate by heating with an excess of thionyl chloride for around 15 hours.^[1]

Europium(III) chloride is soluble in water. When anhydrous, it is expected to be also highly soluble in ethanol (by analogy with SmCl₃). It is nine-coordinate (trigonal prismatic), and it crystallises with the UCl₃ structure.^[2]

Uses

Europium(III) chloride can be used for the preparation of europium(II) chloride by reduction in a gold boat using hydrogen gas while heating slowly to 700 °C. The anhydrous chloride may also be used to prepare organometallic compounds of europium, such as bis(pentamethylcyclopentadienyl)europium(II) complexes.^[3][4] Europium(III) chloride can be used as a starting point for the preparation of other europium salts.

Bibliography

• Edelmann, F. T.; & Poremba, P. (1997). in: Synthetic Methods of Organometallic and Inorganic Chemistry (Herrmann, E. A., Ed.) Vol. 6. Stuttgart:Georg Thieme.
• Weast, R. C., ed (1972). Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (53rd ed.). Cleveland, OH: Chemical Rubber Co.. 

References

1. ^ Freeman, J.H.; Smith, M.L. (1958). "Preparation of Anhydrous Inorganic Chlorides by Dehydration with Thionyl Chloride". J. Inorg. Nucl. Chem. 7 (3): 224–227. doi:10.1016/0022-1902(58)80073-1. 
2. ^ Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1997). Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.). Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. ISBN 0080379419. 
3. ^ Tilley, T. Don; Andersen, Richard A.; Spencer, Brock; Ruben, Helena; Zalkin, Allan; Templeton, David H. (1980). "Divalent lanthanide chemistry. Bis (pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) europium(II) and -ytterbium(II) derivatives: crystal structure of bis (pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) (tetrahydrofuran ytterbium(II) -hemitoluene at 176 K". Inorganic Chemistry 19 (10): 2999. doi:10.1021/ic50212a031. 
4. ^ Evans, William J.; Hughes, Laura A.; Hanusa, Timothy P. (1986). "Synthesis and x-ray crystal structure of bis(pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) complexes of samarium and europium: (C₅Me₅)₂Sm and (C₅Me₅)₂Eu". Organometallics 5 (7): 1285. doi:10.1021/om00138a001.