Ammonium bifluoride

Ammonium bifluoride
Names
IUPAC name
Ammonium hydrogen fluoride
Other names
Ammonium acid fluoride

Ammonium hydrofluoride
Ammonium difluoride
Ammonium hydrogendifluoride

Ammonium hydrogen difluoride
Identifiers
1341-49-7 Yes
ChemSpider 21241205 
Jmol-3D images Image
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Properties
Molecular formula
 H5F2N
Molar mass 57.04 g·mol−1
Appearance White crystals
Density 1.50 g cm−3
Melting point 126 °C (259 °F; 399 K)(decomposes)
Boiling point 240 °C (464 °F; 513 K)
63g/100ml 20°C
Solubility in alcohol slightly soluble
1.390
Structure
Crystal structure Cubic, related to the CsCl structure
[NH4]+ cation: tetrahedral
[HF2]− anion: linear
Hazards
GHS pictograms [1]
H301, H314[1]
P280, P301+310, P305+351+338, P310[1]
R-phrases R25, R34
NFPA 704
Flammability (red): no hazard code Health code 3: Short exposure could cause serious temporary or residual injury. E.g., chlorine gas Reactivity (yellow): no hazard code Special hazards (white): no codeNFPA 704 four-colored diamond
3
Related compounds
Other cations
 potassium bifluoride
Related compounds
 ammonium fluoride
Except where noted otherwise, data is given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C (77 °F), 100 kPa)
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Infobox references

Ammonium hydrogen fluoride is the inorganic compound with the formula NH4HF2 or NH4F·HF. It is produced from ammonia and hydrogen fluoride. This colourless salt is a glass-etchant and an intermediate in a once-contemplated route to hydrofluoric acid.

Structure

Ammonium bifluoride, as its name indicates, contains a bifluoride, or hydrogen(difluoride) anion: HF2−. This centrosymmetric triatomic anion features the strongest known hydrogen bond, with a F−H length of 114 pm.[2] and a bond energy greater than 155 kJ mol−1.[3]

In solid [NH4][HF2], each ammonium cation is surrounded by four fluoride centers in a tetrahedron, with hydrogen-fluorine hydrogen bonds present between the hydrogen atoms of the ammonium ion and the fluorine atoms. Solutions contain tetrahedral [NH4]+ cations and linear [HF2]− anions.

Production and applications

Ammonium bifluoride is a component of some etchants. It attacks silica component of glass:

SiO2 + 4 [NH4][HF2] → SiF4 + 4 [NH4]F + 2 H2O

Potassium bifluoride is a related more commonly used etchant.

Ammonium bifluoride has been considered as an intermediate in the production of hydrofluoric acid from hexafluorosilicic acid. Thus, hexafluorosilicic acid is hydrolyzed to give ammonium fluoride, which thermally decomposes to give the bifluoride:

H2SiF6 + 6 NH3 + 2 H2O → SiO2 + 6 NH4F
2 NH4F → NH3 + [NH4]HF2

The resulting ammonium bifluoride is converted to the sodium bifluoride, which thermally decomposes to release HF.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Sigma-Aldrich Co., Ammonium bifluoride. Retrieved on 2013-07-20.
  2. ↑ Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1997). Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann. ISBN 0080379419.
  3. ↑ Emsley, J. (1980) Very strong hydrogen bonds, Chemical Society Reviews, 9, 91–124. doi:10.1039/CS9800900091
  4. ↑ Jean Aigueperse, Paul Mollard, Didier Devilliers, Marius Chemla, Robert Faron, Renée Romano, Jean Pierre Cuer (2005), "Fluorine Compounds, Inorganic" in Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. doi:10.1002/14356007.a11 307
  1. A. F. Wells (1984) Structural Inorganic Chemistry, 5th ed., Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.