Cobalt(II) iodide or cobaltous iodide are the

inorganic compound An inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds⁠that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as ''inorganic chemistry''. Inorgan ...

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 betwe ...

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 ...

CoI₂(H₂O)₆. These salts are the principal iodides of cobalt.

Synthesis

Cobalt(II) iodide is prepared by treating cobalt powder with

gas Gas is a state of matter that has neither a fixed volume nor a fixed shape and is a compressible fluid. A ''pure gas'' is made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon) or molecules of either a single type of atom ( elements such as ...

eous

hydrogen iodide Hydrogen iodide (HI) 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 und ...

. The hydrated form CoI₂.6H₂O can be prepared by the reaction of

cobalt(II) oxide Cobalt(II) oxide is an inorganic compound that has been described as an olive-green or gray solid. It is used extensively in the ceramics industry as an additive to create blue-colored glazes and enamels, as well as in the chemical industry f ...

(or related cobalt compounds) with

hydroiodic acid Hydroiodic acid (or hydriodic acid) is a colorless liquid. It is an aqueous solution of hydrogen iodide with the chemical formula . It is a strong acid, in which hydrogen iodide is ionized completely in an aqueous solution. Concentrated aqueous ...

. 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 In chemistry, carbonylation refers to reactions that introduce carbon monoxide (CO) into organic and inorganic substrates. Carbon monoxide is abundantly available and conveniently reactive, so it is widely used as a reactant in industrial chemis ...

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 Grignard reagents or Grignard compounds are chemical compounds with the general formula , where X is a halogen and R is an organic group, normally an alkyl or aryl. Two typical examples are methylmagnesium chloride and phenylmagnesium bromide ...

, 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