Lithium hypochlorite is the colorless, crystalline
lithium
Lithium (from el, λίθος, lithos, lit=stone) is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3. It is a soft, silvery-white alkali metal. Under standard conditions, it is the least dense metal and the least dense solid ...
salt
Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...
of
hypochlorous acid
Hypochlorous acid (HClO, HOCl, or ClHO) is a weak acid that forms when chlorine dissolves in water, and itself partially dissociates, forming hypochlorite, ClO−. HClO and ClO− are oxidizers, and the primary disinfection agents of chlorine sol ...
with the
chemical formula
In chemistry, a chemical formula is a way of presenting information about the chemical proportions of atoms that constitute a particular chemical compound or molecule, using chemical element symbols, numbers, and sometimes also other symbol ...
of LiClO. It is used as a disinfectant for pools and a reagent for some chemical reactions.
Safety
Doses of 500 mg/kg cause clinical signs and significant mortality in rats.
The use of chlorine-based disinfectants in domestic water, although widespread, has led to some controversy due to the formation of small quantities of harmful byproducts such as
chloroform.
Studies showed no uptake of lithium if pools with lithium hypochlorite have been used.
See also
*
Sodium hypochlorite
Sodium hypochlorite (commonly known in a dilute solution as bleach) is an inorganic chemical compound with the formula NaOCl (or NaClO), comprising a sodium cation () and a hypochlorite anion (or ). It may also be viewed as the sodium s ...
References
*
*
Lithium salts
Hypochlorites
Disinfectants
Oxidizing agents
{{inorganic-compound-stub