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Author: Subject: Aluminium Trichloride
Hexavalent
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shocked.gif posted on 31-12-2011 at 09:16
Aluminium Trichloride


Yes, I know that there have been many threads on this sort of thing but can never seem to work out one thing; is aluminium trichloride a solid or liquid at RTP? Wikipedia says its a solid, but what's all this about preparing anhydrous AlCl3 with a condenser?
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kavu
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 09:25


Aluminium trichloride is a pale yellow solid at room temperature. Synthesis temperatures are usually so high that AlCl3 melts, hence the condenser.
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 09:36
Aluminium Trichloride


Ah, I see. I assume this is why people want to prepare the anhydrous form;

Melting Point Data for Aluminium Trichloride

192.4 °C *(anhydrous)
0 °C (hexahydrate)

But what's wrong with reacting HCl with Al foil, evaporating a little and then transferring into a dessicator for drying and possibly storage?
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 09:43


Pure aluminium trichloride is a white solid. The yellow color is due to impurities. The hexahydrate is a colorless solid.



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Hexavalent
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 09:46


That's what I thought. I read somewhere that the yellow colour comes from iron trichloride contamination.

Also, Woelen, how do I have my statement/bio come up on all my posts?
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 10:29


Quote: Originally posted by Hexavalent  
But what's wrong with reacting HCl with Al foil, evaporating a little and then transferring into a dessicator for drying and possibly storage?


Problem is that aluminium trichloride is a strong Lewis acid. Aqueous solution of aluminium chloride contains coordinated species, such as [Al(H2O)6]3+. Heating will lead to decomposition and formation of HCl, Al(OH)3 and H2O. Anhydrous aluminium chloride can not be obtained from aqueous solutions.
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 12:52


Quote: Originally posted by Hexavalent  
Yes, I know that there have been many threads on this sort of thing


There are indeed many threads.

And you have clearly not read them, at all. Made only more annoying by the fact you've referenced your knowledge of them and then opened another thread.

For instance;

Quote:
But what's wrong with reacting HCl with Al foil, evaporating a little and then transferring into a dessicator for drying and possibly storage?


I answered that precise question, in detail, in one of those threads.

Which was it's self, a repeat of the same question.

That wiki article needs editing to include; "You cannot make anhydrous AlCl3 by boiling it down".

{edit} Hang on, it does!


Quote:
Hydrated aluminium trichloride is prepared by dissolving aluminium oxides in hydrochloric acid. Heating this solid does not produce anhydrous aluminium trichloride, the hexahydrate decomposes to aluminium oxide when heated to 300 °C


And that;

Quote:
Aluminium chloride is manufactured on a large scale by the exothermic reaction of aluminium metal with chlorine or hydrogen chloride at temperatures between 650 to 750 °C


If you'd paid a moments interest to the other many threads mentioning the fact that it is a gas when produced this way, you'd know why it needs some form of condensing surface.

Merge or delete.

[Edited on 31-12-2011 by peach]




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Hexavalent
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 13:23


The thing is, so many people say so many different things that its difficult to keep track of what's going on with different procedures. I am relatively new to these forums (but not to chemistry) and am unsure of how to merge threads. Help?

(Additionally, I find it totally unnecessary to word your response in an almost offensive fashion.)
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 13:41


Quote:
I am relatively new to these forums (but not to chemistry)


Undergraduates at university (18-21 year olds) will have used AlCl3 and noted the fact that it's a solid at room temperature. I've not done chemistry at university, and I realize it's a solid at room temperature, and know the answers to those questions you've repeated. So you can't be all that experienced to be lagging so far behind a theory noobster like myself, who's education in chemistry beyond A-Level comes purely from this forum, google and my own practical work at home.

Go to SIGMAALDRICH.COM

Type "AlCl3" into the search box.

What units are the packs sold in? And what's the description?

That's how hard it was.

Quote:
I find it totally unnecessary to word your response in an almost offensive fashion


It is an offensive, against sheer laziness.

[Edited on 31-12-2011 by peach]




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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 13:46


My sheer laziness? You have not actually answered my question in hand . . how to merge or delete posts. I am new to this forum and as home science enthusiasts we should be helping and encouraging each other, as opposed to being rude and discouraging others.
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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 13:47


You can't merge threads, the moderators do it when people keep opening threads that are identical to one another.



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[*] posted on 31-12-2011 at 13:52


Thankyou, that was the only answer I wanted and was needed.
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[*] posted on 2-1-2012 at 19:11


Quote: Originally posted by Hexavalent  
The thing is, so many people say so many different things that its difficult to keep track of what's going on with different procedures. I am relatively new to these forums (but not to chemistry) and am unsure of how to merge threads. Help?

(Additionally, I find it totally unnecessary to word your response in an almost offensive fashion.)


And what makes you think by opening up another thread you will not simply receive the same 'many' people saying the same 'many' different things.

The reality is most likely that you were simply too lazy to sift through the readily available information to glean what you needed and hoped that by asking, someone would do this for you.
Except you were not honest, you would have received better reception had you said, 'hey i'm lazy can you spend time answering my question so i can spend more time punking around with my cooljam'.

Instead when confronted about your drivel you retreat to the time honoured tradition of takers, that being, attempting to invoke sympathy via the 'poor me' approach.
Ffs get a job at reception somewhere and put all this out of your head or get some intiative.

No offense intended to anyone working in reception.




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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 05:52


Well said Panache.

In any good thread the writers have likely taken hours out of their days on several occasions to fact check and add comprehensible usefull data. Peach and his posts. Hours? I have a feeling it takes him tens of hours to condense his picture sessions and likely hours more to do the write ups. This is ignoring the dozens of hours of reaserch that he would have done to have his little photo session and the dozens of hours to set up everything and verify it won't kill him. Really SM is just lucky that he has not realized that he could make more money and have more fun taking pictures of appreciative naked ladies.

Ever climbed a mountain? Home chemistry is a mountain. We all struggle to find what we can, asking to be spoon fed is like jumping on a sherpa(yes Peach, you are now a sherpa) and prodding him with your heels while pointing up the mountain and saying "giddy up"

Besides the disrespect of having onces previouse work being dis-regarded there is a safety aspect. No one here wants to inadvertantly contribute to someones injury or injury of others via that individuals ignorance. Anyone who can not read up on a couple of freelygiven pages of know-how/what can not be trusted to go out and gather all relivant safety data before mixing thing. Any such mishaps reflect very harshly on the whole of home science and can bring about further restriction. I wouldn't get pissed at Peach, I would just do more leg work next time and as Panache said, own your mistakes and intentions.

Almost every forum member here did the same thing as you when they started on the forum - they ether learned and are still here or they got upset and left. Those that stayed are often brilliant in there own way and are accepted.

[Edited on 3-1-2012 by Neil] Edit: miss hit end while still writing

[Edited on 3-1-2012 by Neil]
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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 14:16
how to make aluminum trichloride


I had an idea for making anhydrous aluminum chloride. Place a piece of aluminum foil into ethyl ether. Then bubble in chlorine gas that has been passed through loose calcium chloride to remove any traces of moisture. The chlorine gas should react with the aluminum (without needing to be heated), and the resulting aluminum trichloride will dissolve into the ethyl ether. "Solutions of Aluminum Chloride in Ethers", Gordon G. Evans, Thomas R. P. Gibb Jr., J. Kevin Kennedy, Frank P. Del Greco

A similar procedure is already used for making anhydrous zinc chloride.
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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 14:34


I tried that with dichloromethane and hydrogen chloride.

I was not able to check the results well enough and it could have benefited from better drying (e.g. drying the DCM over calcium hydride). However, the solid material I did recover was fuming to some extent.

I recall suggestions of activating the aluminum with iodine or mercury chloride. I may give it another try, this time with one of those present.

Within the masses of information already posted there have also been mentions of drying it by co-distillation.

The solvent method would be particularly nice if it can be made to function as it would be easy to generate it in place - within the flask where it needs to be - avoiding the need for special distillations, extremely hot tube reactions, recollecting the solid and then transferring it through the air, where it'll start reacting again en route.

However, as with many theorized methods, I do agree with Len and the others that less talk and more action is required. So won't speculate any further on it until it's actually been run again in front of me.




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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 15:33


i was going to bubble dry chlorine gas in carbon tetrachloride with aluminum powder (500mesh) suspended and stirred constantly....i have yet to make CCl4 from chloroform and chlorine....
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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 16:43


Quote: Originally posted by AndersHoveland  
I had an idea for making anhydrous aluminum chloride. Place a piece of aluminum foil into ethyl ether. Then bubble in chlorine gas that has been passed through loose calcium chloride to remove any traces of moisture.
My recollection is that ethyl ether is not inert to chlorine. I vaguely recall something about explosive products being produced.
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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 17:08


sounds like a set up! run!!!!!
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[*] posted on 3-1-2012 at 18:26


Quote: Originally posted by neptunium  
i was going to bubble dry chlorine gas in carbon tetrachloride with aluminum powder (500mesh) suspended and stirred constantly....i have yet to make CCl4 from chloroform and chlorine....


The aluminum chloride would have to be soluble in CCl4, which I am not sure that it is, otherwise the reaction would not be able to proceed.


Chlorine gas does not react with ethyl ether, at least not in the dark. But it is probably not a good idea to leave ethyl ether in contact with chlorine for more than an hour, as chlorinated products will tend to form.

Ethyl hypochlorite, however, can be formed by passing chlorine into a solution of water, ethyl alcohol, a limited quantity of sodium hydroxide. Methyl hypochlorite is a dangerously sensitive explosive.
Journal of the Chemical Society, Volume 50, p607

Ethyl hypochlorite reacts with sulfur dioxide to form ethyl chlorosulfonate, CH3-CH2-O-SO2Cl, which is similar to ethyl sulfate in reactivity, although I am not sure if it is as hazardously toxic.

[Edited on 4-1-2012 by AndersHoveland]
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[*] posted on 4-1-2012 at 04:40


Mixtures of Al with CCl4 can be detonated.
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[*] posted on 4-1-2012 at 20:06


glad i didnt try it then...i`ll pass Cl2 onto Al in a glass chamber then!
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[*] posted on 4-1-2012 at 21:44


You might want to read the mentioned threads first.
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[*] posted on 4-1-2012 at 21:52


yup

[Edited on 5-1-2012 by neptunium]
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[*] posted on 5-1-2012 at 00:30


You forgot to warm it up?



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