Chloryl fluoride is the chemical compound with the formula ClO₂F. It is commonly encountered as side-product in reactions of chlorine fluorides with oxygen sources. It is the

acyl fluoride In organic chemistry, an acyl halide (also known as an acid halide) is a chemical compound derived from an oxoacid by replacing a hydroxyl group () with a halide group (, where X is a halogen). If the acid is a carboxylic acid (), the compound c ...

of chloric acid.

Preparation

ClO₂F was first reported by Schmitz and Schumacher in 1942, who prepared it by the fluorination of ClO₂. The compound is more conveniently prepared by treatment of sodium chlorate and chlorine trifluoride and purified by vacuum fractionation, i.e. selectively condensing this species separately from other products. This species is a gas boiling at −6 °C: :6 NaClO₃ + 4 ClF₃ → 6 ClO₂F + 2 Cl₂ + 3 O₂ + 6 NaF

Structure

In contrast to O₂F₂, ClO₂F is a pyramidal molecule. This structure is predicted by VSEPR. The differing structures reflects the greater tendency of chlorine to exist in positive oxidation states with oxygen and fluorine ligands. The related Cl-O-F compound perchloryl fluoride, ClO₃F, is tetrahedral. The related bromine compound ''bromyl fluoride'' (BrO₂F) adopts the same structure as ClO₂F, whereas ''iodyl fluoride'' (IO₂F) forms a polymeric substance under standard conditions.

References

External links

WebBook page for ClO2F
{{fluorine compounds Chloryl compounds Oxyfluorides Fluorides Nonmetal halides Gases Substances discovered in the 1940s