Cobalt(II) iodide or cobaltous iodide are the
inorganic compound
In chemistry, an inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds, that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as '' inorganic chemist ...
s with the
formula
In science, a formula is a concise way of expressing information symbolically, as in a mathematical formula or a ''chemical formula''. The informal use of the term ''formula'' in science refers to the general construct of a relationship betwee ...
Co I2 and the
hexahydrate
In chemistry, a hydrate is a substance that contains water or its constituent elements. The chemical state of the water varies widely between different classes of hydrates, some of which were so labeled before their chemical structure was understo ...
CoI
2(H
2O)
6. These salts are the principal iodides of cobalt.
[
]
Synthesis
Cobalt(II) iodide is prepared by treating cobalt powder with gas
Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma).
A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...
eous hydrogen iodide
Hydrogen iodide () is a diatomic molecule and hydrogen halide. Aqueous solutions of HI are known as hydroiodic acid or hydriodic acid, a strong acid. Hydrogen iodide and hydroiodic acid are, however, different in that the former is a gas under sta ...
.[ The hydrated form CoI2.6H2O can be prepared by the reaction of cobalt(II) oxide (or related cobalt compounds) with hydroiodic acid.
Cobalt(II) iodide crystallizes in two polymorphs, the α- and β-forms. The α-polymorph consists of black hexagonal crystals, which turn dark green when exposed to air. Under a vacuum at 500 °C, samples of α-CoI2 sublime, yielding the β-polymorph as a yellow crystals. β-CoI2 also readily absorbs moisture from the air, converting into green hydrate. At 400 °C, β-CoI2 reverts to the α-form.][O. Glemser "Cobalt, Nickel" in Handbook of Preparative Inorganic Chemistry, 2nd Ed. Edited by G. Brauer, Academic Press, 1963, NY. Vol. 1. p. 1518.]
Structures
The anhydrous salts adopt the cadmium halide structures.
The hexaaquo salt consists of separated o(H2O)6sup>2+ and iodide ions as verified crystallographically.[“Structure Cristalline et Expansion Thermique de L’Iodure de Nickel Hexahydrate“ (Crystal structure and thermal expansion of nickel(II) iodide hexahydrate) Louër, Michele; Grandjean, Daniel; Weigel, Dominique Journal of Solid State Chemistry (1973), 7(2), 222-8. ]["The crystal structure of the crystalline hydrates of transition metal salts. The structure of CoI2·6H2O" Shchukarev, S. A.; Stroganov, E. V.; Andreev, S. N.; Purvinskii, O. F. Zhurnal Strukturnoi Khimii 1963, vol. 4, pp. 63-6.]
Reactions and applications
Anhydrous cobalt(II) iodide is sometimes used to test for the presence of water in various solvents.[
]
Cobalt(II) iodide is used as a catalyst, e.g. in carbonylation
Carbonylation refers to reactions that introduce carbon monoxide into organic and inorganic substrates. Carbon monoxide is abundantly available and conveniently reactive, so it is widely used as a reactant in industrial chemistry. The term carbon ...
s. It catalyzes the reaction of diketene
Diketene is an organic compound with the molecular formula , and which is sometimes written as . It is formed by dimerization of ketene, . Diketene is a member of the oxetane family. It is used as a reagent in organic chemistry. It is a colorle ...
with Grignard reagents, useful for the synthesis of terpenoids
The terpenoids, also known as isoprenoids, are a class of naturally occurring organic chemicals derived from the 5-carbon compound isoprene and its derivatives called terpenes, diterpenes, etc. While sometimes used interchangeably with "terpenes", ...
[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cobalt(Ii) Iodide
Cobalt(II) compounds
Iodides
Metal halides