Names and Formulas of Inorganic Compounds

A Nomenclature of Organic Chemistry (Blue Book) and Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry (Red Book) can be found at www.iupac.org. 

Binary compounds are those formed between two elements. If one of the elements is a metal and the other a nonmetal, the binary compoimd is usually made up of ions that is, it is a binary ionic compound. To name a binary compound of a metal and a nonmetal, 

If the two elements in a binary compound are both nonmetals instead of a metal and a nonmetal, the compound is a molecular compoimd. The method of naming these compounds is similar to that just discussed. For example, 

In both the formula and the name, we write the element with the positive oxidation state first HCl and not CIH. 

EXAMPLE 3-8 Writing Formulas When Names of Compounds Are Given 

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Names and Formulas of Inorganic Compounds—In this section on the nomenclature of inorganic compounds, the names and formulas of two-element or binary compounds are considered first. The... 

The rules for naming inorganic compounds are set down by the Committee on Inorganic Nomenclature of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (lUPAC). The names and formulas of a few organic compounds were given in Table 2-2, and more systematic rules for naming them will appear in Chapter 27. 

The structural and formulaic questions concerning compounds such as (4.66a)-(4.66c) were largely resolved by Alfred Werner,31 the first inorganic chemist to receive a Nobel Prize (1913). Werner carefully studied the total number of free ions contributing to ionic conductivity, as well as the number of free chloride ions that could be precipitated (exchanged with a more soluble ion) under conditions of excess Ag+, namely... 

Systematic names and stoichiometric formulae are intended to convey as much information as possible in the smallest space concerning the composition and nature of a substance. The internationally-agreed (though not universally-obeyed) rules for the naming of inorganic compounds are set out briefly in most inorganic texts, and in The Handbook of Chemistry and Physics they need not be repeated here. 

So far, we have identified coordination compounds only by their chemical formulas, but names are also useful for many purposes. Some substances were named before their structures were known. Thus, K3[Fe(CN)g] was called potassium fer-ricyanide, and K4[Fe(CN)g] was potassium ferrocyanide [these are complexes of Fe (ferric) and Fe (ferrous) ions, respectively]. These older names are still used conversationally but systematic names are preferred to avoid ambiguity. The definitive source for the naming of inorganic compounds is Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry-IUPAC Recommendations 2005 (N. G. Connelly and T. Damhus, Sr., Eds. Royal Society of Chemistry, 2005). 

When atomic theory developed to the point where it was possible to write specific formulae for the various oxides and other binary compounds, names reflecting composition more or less accurately then became common no names reflecting the composition of the oxosalts were ever adopted, however. As the number of inorganic compounds rapidly grew, the essential pattern of nomenclature was little altered until near the end of the 19th century. As a need arose, a name was proposed and nomenclature grew by accretion rather than by systematization. 

The purpose of this Chapter is to guide the users of nomenclature in building the name or formula of an inorganic compound and to help them verify that the derived name or formula fully obeys the accepted principles. The various devices used in names (or formulae) are described successively below, together with their meanings and fields of application. 

The common acids are other examples of inorganic compounds that are known by common rather than formal names. Some names of common acids and bases that you will use frequently in chemistry laboratory experiments are listed in Table 5.7. Although they often do not follow the rules you have been learning, they will soon become so familiar that their formulas and names will be easy to remember. 

This is an exercise in writing formulas and naming of inorganic compounds. Complete the following tables. You may use any written material available to assist. The first one is done for you. Your supervisor may ask you to read your table to another technician in the lab to practice pronouncing the names. 

Compounds are listed by molecular formula following the Hill convention. Substances not containing carbon are listed first, followed by those that contain carbon. To locate an organic compound by name or CAS Registry Number when the molecular formula is not known, use the table Physical Constants of Organic Compounds in Section 3 and its indexes to determine the molecular formula. The indexes to Physical Constants of Inorganic Compounds in Section 4 can be used in a similar way. 

Substances are listed alphabetically by systematic name. The Notes column gives further information on the form of the substance and the basis to which the TLV is referred. This column also includes common synonyms and acronyms in brackets (e.g., [MTBE]). The Eormula column gives the molecular formula in the Hill convention for organic compounds and the customary line formula for inorganic compounds. The TWA and STEL limits appear in the last two columns. 

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