Jump to content

Group 13 hydride

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Image
Borane, a simple group 13 hydride

Group 13 hydrides are chemical compounds containing group 13-hydrogen bonds (elements of group 13: boron, aluminium, gallium, indium, thallium, and nihonium).[1]

Trihydrides

[edit]

The simplest series has the chemical formula XH3, with X representing any of the boron family.

CompoundChemical formula GeometryModel
boron trihydride
hydrogen boride
(borane)
BH3
ImageImage
aluminium trihydride
hydrogen aluminide
(alumane)
(alane)
AlH3
Image
gallium trihydride
hydrogen gallide
(gallane)
GaH3
ImageImage
indium trihydride
hydrogen indigide
(indigane)
InH3
Image
thallium trihydride
hydrogen thallide
(thallane)
TlH3
Image
nihonium trihydride[2]
hydrogen nihonide
(nihonane)
NhH3

The great variety of boranes show a huge covalent cluster chemistry, but the heavier group 13 hydrides do not. Despite their formulae, however, they tend to form polymers. Alane (aluminum trihydride) is a strong reducing agent with octahedrally coordinated aluminium atoms. Gallane is even harder to synthesise and decomposes to gallium and hydrogen at room temperature. Indigane and thallane are too unstable to exist for any significant time when not coordinated.[3]

Simple MH3 group 13 hydrides in gas phase have a trigonal planar molecular geometry. This is due to the sp2 hybridized center and vacant p-orbital, and contrasts with the trigonal pyramidal geometry of the pnictogen hydrides which are sp3 hybridized and contain a non-bonding lone pair of electrons.

All group 13 hydrides have their hydrogen anions such as BH4 and AlH4.

Hexahydrides

[edit]

This series has the chemical formula X2H6.

CompoundChemical formula GeometryModel
B2H6
ImageImage
Al2H6
Image
Ga2H6
ImageImage
In2H6
Image
Tl2H6
Nh2H6

See also

[edit]
  • Scandium hydride ScH2

References

[edit]
  1. Downs, Anthony J.; Pulham, Colin R. (1994-01-01). "The hydrides of aluminium, gallium, indium, and thallium: a re-evaluation". Chemical Society Reviews. 23 (3): 175. doi:10.1039/cs9942300175. ISSN 1460-4744.
  2. Seth, Michael; Crockett, Schwerdtfeger; Peter, Faegri; Knut (1999). "The chemistry of superheavy elements. III. Theoretical studies on element 113 compounds". Journal of Chemical Physics. 111 (14): 6422–6433. Bibcode:1999JChPh.111.6422S. doi:10.1063/1.480168. hdl:2292/5178. S2CID 41854842.
  3. Greenwood, Norman N.; Earnshaw, Alan (1997). Chemistry of the Elements (2nd ed.). Butterworth-Heinemann. pp. 227–33. doi:10.1016/C2009-0-30414-6. ISBN 978-0-08-037941-8.