Chlorine, disproportionation

Chlorine is somewhat less reactive than fluorine. Although it reacts with nearly all metals (Figure 21.3, p. 557), heating is often required. This reflects the relatively strong bond in the Cl2 molecule (B.E. Cl—Cl = 243 kj/mol). Chlorine disproportionates in water, forming Cl- ions (oxid. no. Cl = —1) and HCIO molecules (oxid. no. Cl = +1). 

Benzonitrile oxide (C in Figure 15.44) is an isolable 1,3-dipole. It can be generated from benzaldoxime and anNaOH/Cl2 solution. Under these reaction conditions the oxime/nitroso anion (A B) is initially formed and chlorine disproportionates into Cl—O and chloride. An SN reaction of the negatively charged C atom of the anion A B at the Cl atom of Cl— O or of Cl—O—H affords the oc-chlorinated nitroso compound E, which tautomerizes to the hydroxamic acid chloride D. From that species, the nitrile oxide C is generated via a base mediated 1,3-elimination. Isoxazoles are formed in the reactions of C with alkynes (Figure 15.44), while isoxazolines would be formed in its reactions with alkenes. 

Disproportionation is a reaction in which an element is simultaneously oxidised and reduced. Chlorine disproportionates when added to alkali ... 

Bromine, like chlorine, disproportionates in basic solution but to a much smaller extent. Similarly, further disproportionation occurs in hot basic solution, just as for chlorine. Write balanced net ionic equations for these two reactions which are analogous to those in POST-LABORATORY QUESTION 2. 

Hypochlorous acid, HCIO, is produced when chlorine disproportionates (is oxidized and reduced) in water. In basic solution, the equilibrium is very far toward the acid anions ... 

Example The system C1+I/C1°/C1 —I gives the diagram represented in Fig. 15.12. We see that chlorine exists in a very acidic mixture only, that is, for pH < 1.2-3.0 according to the adopted conventions in order to draw the diagram. At a pH value higher than this limit, chlorine disproportionates according to... 

Reaction (11.4) is really a disproportionation reaction of the halate(I) anion 3XO 2X -E XO. ) Reaction (11.3) is favoured by the use of dilute alkali and low temperature, since the halate(I) anions, XO are thermally unstable and readily disproportionate (i.e. reaction (11.4)). The stability of the halate(I) anion, XO , decreases from chlorine to iodine and the iodate(I) ion disproportionates very rapidly even at room temperature. 

Liquid chlorine dioxide, ClOj, boils at 284 K to give an orange-yellow gas. A very reactive compound, it decomposes readily and violently into its constituents. It is a powerful oxidising agent which has recently found favour as a commercial oxidising agent and as a bleach for wood pulp and flour. In addition, it is used in water sterilisation where, unlike chlorine, it does not produce an unpleasant taste. It is produced when potassium chlorate(V) is treated with concentrated sulphuric acid, the reaction being essentially a disproportionation of chloric(V) acid ... 

Most chlorofluorocarbons are hydrolytically stable, CCI2F2 being considerably more stable than either CCl F or CHCI2F. Chlorofluoromethanes and ethanes disproportionate in the presence of aluminum chloride. For example, CCl F and CCI2F2 give CCIF and CCl CHCIF2 disproportionates to CHF and CHCl. The carbon—chlorine bond in most chlorofluorocarbons can be homolyticaHy cleaved under photolytic conditions (185—225 nm) to give chlorine radicals. This photochemical decomposition is the basis of the prediction that chlorofluorocarbons that reach the upper atmosphere deplete the earth s ozone shield. 

Halides. Gold(III) chloride [13453-07-1] can be prepared directiy from the elements at 200°C (167). It exists as the chlotine-bridged dimer, Au2Clg ia both the soHd and gas phases under an atmospheric pressure of chlorine at temperatures below 254°C. Above this temperature ia a chlorine atmosphere or at lower temperatures ia an iaert atmosphere, it decomposes first to AuCl [10294-29-8] and then to gold. The monochloride is only metastable at room temperature and slowly disproportionates to gold(0) and gold(III) chloride. The disproportionation is much more rapid ia water both for AuCl and the complex chloride, [AuCy, formed by iateraction with metal chlorides ia solution. 

The purple permanganate ion [14333-13-2], MnOu can be obtained from lower valent manganese compounds by a wide variety of reactions, eg, from manganese metal by anodic oxidation from Mn(II) solution by oxidants such as o2one, periodate, bismuthate, and persulfate (using Ag" as catalyst), lead peroxide in acid, or chlorine in base or from MnO by disproportionation, or chemical or electrochemical oxidation. 

Electrolysis. Although the oxidation of manganate(VI) to permanganate can be accompHshed by chlorination, ozonation, or disproportionation (126), electrolysis is the preferred method. Reactions are as foUows ... 

Titanium Dichloride. Titanium dichloride [10049-06-6] is a black crystalline soHd (mp > 1035 at 10°C, bp > 1500 at 40°C, density 31(40) kg/m ). Initial reports that the titanium atoms occupy alternate layers of octahedral interstices between hexagonaHy close-packed chlorines (analogous to titanium disulfide) have been disputed (120). TiCl2 reacts vigorously with water to form a solution of titanium trichloride andUberate hydrogen. The dichloride is difficult to obtain pure because it slowly disproportionates. 

The hexachloride, uranium hexachloride [13763-23-0], UCl, is best prepared by chlorination of UCl [10026-10-5] with SbCl. An alternative preparative approach is the disproportionation UCl [13470-21 -8] to UCl and UCl under reduced pressure. The obvious disadvantage of the second method is contamination by UCl, however, sublimation is a possible purification technique. Isostmctural with the hexafluoride, the hexachloride is monomeric with an octahedral arrangement of the chlorine atoms around the uranium center. 

Equation 22 gives the maximum theoretical obtainable chlorine dioxide from the disproportionation of HCIO,. Experimentally, differences in the stoichiometry have been reported. This is because the chloride formed in equation 21 can catalyze the reaction to form more chlorine dioxide as in equation 22. Proposed mechanisms for these reactions and the kinetics under various conditions have been described (16,108). 

Acid—Sodium Chlorite System. The addition of a strong inorganic acid into an aqueous sodium chlorite solution produces chlorous acid, which rapidly disproportionates into chlorine dioxide. One proposed set of reactions using hydrochloric acid is (110) ... 

Hypochlorous Acid—Sodium Chlorite System. In this method, chlorine gas is educted into water forming a hypochlorous acid solution which then reacts with aqueous sodium chlorite to produce chlorine dioxide (114—116). Hypochlorous acid, formed from the disproportionation of chlorine gas in water ... 

The reaction chemistry changes when the initial reactant concentrations are low or there is excess hypochlorous acid present. The [CI2O2] intermediate disproportionation route to chlorine dioxide becomes less important (eq. 48), and the route to chlorite formation by hydrolysis predominates as does the reaction with any available excess HOCl to form chlorate and chlorine ... 

A secondary competing reaction can occur where chlorine dioxide disproportionates in the alkaline solution, producing sodium chlorite and chlorate ... 

Dehydrochlorination of 1,1,2-trichloroethane at 500°C in the presence of a copper catalyst gives a different product, ie, cis- and /n7 j -l,2-dichloroethylene. Addition of small amounts of a chlorinating agent, such as chlorine, promotes radical dehydrochlorination in the gas phase through a disproportionation mechanism that results in loss of hydrogen chloride and formation of a double bond. The dehydrochlorination of 1,2-dichloroethane in the presence of chlorine, as shown in equations 19 and 20, is a typical example. 

Iodoxybenzene has been prepared by the disproportionation of iodosobenzene,4Hi by oxidation of iodosobenzene with hypo-chlorous add or bleaching powder,7 and by oxidation of iodobenzene with hypochlorous acid or with sodium hydroxide and bromine.8 Other oxidizing agents used with iodobenzene include air,3 chlorine in pyridine,9 Caro s acid,19-11 concentrated chloric acid,15 and peracetic acid solution.13 Hypochlorite oxidation of iodobenzene dichloride has also been employed.14... 

The acid strengths and oxidizing abilities of the halogen oxoacids increase with the oxidation number of the halogen. The hypohalous acids, HXO (halogen oxidation number +1), are prepared by direct reaction of the halogen with water. For example, chlorine gas disproportionates in water to produce hypochlorous acid and hydrochloric acid ... 

Diphenyl diselenide has been prepared by disproportionation of phenyl selenocyanate in the presence of potassium hydroxide" or ammonia/ and by air oxidation of benzeneselenol. The preparation of benzeneselenol is described in an earlier volume in this series/ In the present procedure phenylselenomagnesium bromide formed from phenylmagnesium bromide and selenium is oxidized directly to diphenyl diselenide with bromine/ Thus the liberation of the malodorous and toxic hydrogen selenide and benzeneselenol is avoided. Benzeneselenenyl chloride has been prepared by thermal elimination of ethyl chloride from ethyl phenyl selenide di-chloride/ by thermal elimination of chlorine from phenylselenium trichloride," and by chlorinolysis of diphenyl diselenide with either sulfuryl chloride " or chlorine. " ... 

Interaction of the two compounds led to the evolution of a toxic gas thought to be chlorine [1], It is the far more poisonous phosgene, arising from the known base-catalysed disproportionation of the carbonate to oxalyl chloride and phosgene, which occurs even at ambient temperature [2], (The editor knows that amides, too, catalyse this rearrangement and suspects that Lewis acids will also)... 

The solvent-free material, isolated at — 70°C, disproportionates violently (sometimes explosively) at — 50°C to ammonium chloride and nitrogen trichloride [1]. Ethereal solutions of chloramine are readily handled [2], In the preparation of chloramine by reaction of sodium hypochlorite with ammonia, care is necessary to avoid excess chlorine in the preparation of the hypochlorite from sodium hydroxide, because nitrogen trichloride may be formed in the subsequent reaction with ammonia [3]. 

It may disproportionate explosively to lead(II) chloride and chlorine above 100°C [1]. Preparative precautions are detailed [2],... 

The fragmentation in the MALDI-TOF MS experiment noted from the brominated polymer is less prevalent in this chlorinated material, but evidence for the lactone-ended oligomer (7) is still noted (see Figure 8). Evidence for the competing disproportionation mechanism is again provided by the presence of peaks proposed to be from unsaturated (8) and saturated (9) end-functionalised oligomer [10]. The data indicate that this disproportionation reaction is a minor termination pathway, as low intensity peaks are noted for 8 and 9 (as for 4 5 from the brominated analogue). 

Sulfur dichloride is difficult to handle it disproportionates readily, has an unpleasant odor, and tends to introduce extra, unwanted chlorine atoms. Several reagents have been developed, especially by Harpp and co-workers, in which these undesirable features have been modified or eliminated. Succinimide-N-sulfenyl chloride (28) and phthalimide-N-sulfenyl chloride (29) are both stable crystalline compounds which undergo many of the reactions of the sulfur dichloride itself. They can, for example, be used in a facile, high yield synthesis of thiiranes from alkenes.33... 

One of the reactions that HC103 undergoes is the disproportionation that produces perchloric acid and chlorine. 

Chlorinated waters are being discharged to estuaries and coastal waters in increasing quantities. In such systems the chlorine reacts with the natural bromide and ammonia at pH 8 to produce the highly toxic hypobromous acid, hypobromite ion, and haloamines. For normal seawater of pH 8, the initial products of chlorination are a mixture of hypobromous acid and the hypobromite ion. Both of these compounds are unstable with respect to decomposition and disproportionation. 

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