Germanium disulfide or Germanium(IV) sulfide is the

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

with the formula Ge S₂. It is a white high-melting

crystalline A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...

solid. The compound is a 3-dimensional polymer, in contrast to

silicon disulfide Silicon disulfide is the inorganic compound with the formula Si S2. Like silicon dioxide, this material is polymeric, but it adopts a 1-dimensional structure quite different from the usual forms of SiO2. Synthesis, structure, and properties Th ...

, which is a one-dimensional polymer. The Ge-S distance is 2.19 Å.

History

Germanium disulfide was the first

germanium Germanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is lustrous, hard-brittle, grayish-white and similar in appearance to silicon. It is a metalloid in the carbon group that is chemically similar to its group neighbo ...

compound found by Clemens Winkler, during the analysis of

argyrodite Argyrodite is an uncommon silver germanium sulfide mineral with formula Ag8GeS6. The color is iron-black with a purplish tinge, and the luster metallic. Discovered by Clemens Winkler in 1886, it is of interest as it was described shortly after t ...

. The fact that germanium sulfide does not dissolve in aqueous acid made it possible for Winkler to isolate the new element.

Production

Germanium disulfide is created by reacting

hydrogen sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The und ...

with germanium tetrachloride in a concentrated

hydrochloric acid Hydrochloric acid, also known as muriatic acid, is an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride. It is a colorless solution with a distinctive pungent smell. It is classified as a strong acid. It is a component of the gastric acid in the dig ...

solution.

Natural occurrence

Natural GeS₂ is restricted to fumaroles of some burning coal-mining waste heaps.

References

Germanium(IV) compounds Sulfides Dichalcogenides {{inorganic-compound-stub