Phosphoretted hydrogen

With Phosphorus.—If red phosphorus is gently heated in a stream of hydrogen, direct chemical union takes place to a small extent, with the production of a gas termed " Phosphoretted Hydrogen or " Phosphine —... 

The gas prepared by this process oontains ee hydrogen and the vapour of liquid phosphoretted hydrogen. 

In this behaviour phosphoretted hydrogen bears a striking analogy to ammonia, althougb, unlike the latter compound, it does not unite with other acids. 

Beaetion,—Decomposed by sunlight into solid and gaseous phosphoretted hydrogen.—... 

PH(0H)2, would be, not P2Oa, but H-P=0, like (16). But this substance is not formed on heating phosphorous acid, for it decomposes into phosphoric acid and phosphoretted hydrogen, thus 4H3P03 = PH3 + 3HgP04. One of the varieties of the salts of nitrous acid, however, has a corresponding formula. 

These compounds are derivatives of ammonia there are few similar compounds of phosphine one, however, is produced when phosphoretted hydrogen is passed over aluminium chloride its formula is PHj.jAlClg. And arsine, passed through a solution of mercuric chloride, yields Hg2AsCl.HgCl2 it is somewhat analogous to the black precipitate, Hg2NH.HCl. 

Phosphides and silicides frequently behave in an analogous manner. Thus, calcium phosphide, CaaP2, is decomposed by water yielding phosphorus trihydnde, PH3, and liquid phosphoretted hydrogen, P2H4, which is spontaneously inflammable. 

Oxidation.—Although pure phosphine does not itself in the ordinary way inflame spontaneously with air, yet it does so when the pressure is reduced. This observation was made almost simultaneously by Davy 9 and de la Billardiere.10 In the words of Davy— I found the phosphoretted hydrogen produced a flash of light when admitted into the best vacuum that could be made by an excellent pump of Naim s construction. ... 

The combustion of phosphoretted hydrogen in oxygen has given rise to analogous observations on the part of Van de Stadt. ... 

Synonyms Hydrogen phosphide Phosphorus hydride Phosphorus trihydride Phosphoretted hydrogen Aluminum phosphide (Celphos, Phostoxin, Quick Phos)... 

Preparation.—By dissolving calcio phosphide in coneen. trated hydrooblorie acid, or by the action of light upon the liquid phosphoretted hydrogen. 

Faraday, who gives a long abstract, says I cannot form a distinct idea of the power to which he refers the phenomena . Faraday also brings in Dalton s idea (see Vol. Ill, p. 766) that one gas is a vacuum towards another gas , and his speculations are far from clear. He does not explain why the effects are specific to platinum and why other solids do not behave in the same way. He found that it is essential that the platinum shall be clean and found that ethylene, carbon monoxide, carbon disulphide and ether vapours, retard the combination of hydrogen and oxygen on platinum, but the metal acts when put into a pure gas mixture. Sulphuretted hydrogen and phosphoretted hydrogen, however, permanently inactivated the platinum unless treated with hot concentrated sulphuric acid or fused caustic potash and washed with water. 

Rose thought that phospham, discovered by Davy (see p. 54), is phosphorus nitride PNj, but Grerhardt showed that it is PNsH. Extensive researches on the spontaneously inflammable and non-spontaneously inflammable phosphoretted hydrogens led Rose to suppose that they were isomeric. He obtained hypophosphorous acid by the action of hydrogen sulphide on the lead salt, and foimd that its salts with many metals sdl contain water which cannot be removed by heating without decomposition. The true composition was first explained by Wurtz (see p. 479). Rose concluded that there were twelve compounds of carbon dioxide and ammonia. He investigated tellurium compounds. ... 

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