Polonium tetranitrate is an
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 ...
, a salt of
polonium
Polonium is a chemical element with the symbol Po and atomic number 84. Polonium is a chalcogen. A rare and highly radioactive metal with no stable isotopes, polonium is chemically similar to selenium and tellurium, though its metallic character ...
and
nitric acid
Nitric acid is the inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly corrosive mineral acid. The compound is colorless, but older samples tend to be yellow cast due to decomposition into oxides of nitrogen. Most commercially available nitri ...
with the chemical formula Po(NO
3)
4. The compound is radioactive, forms white crystals.
Synthesis
Dissolution of metallic polonium in concentrated nitric acid:
::
Physical properties
Polonium(IV) nitrate forms white or colorless crystals.
Dissolves in water with
hydrolysis
Hydrolysis (; ) is any chemical reaction in which a molecule of water breaks one or more chemical bonds. The term is used broadly for substitution reaction, substitution, elimination reaction, elimination, and solvation reactions in which water ...
.
Chemical properties
It disproportionates in aqueous weakly acidic nitric acid solutions:
::
Polonium ion (2+) is oxidized with nitric acid to polonium (4+).
References
{{Nitrates
Polonium compounds
Nitrates