Plutonium tetrafluoride preparation

Plutonium tetrafluoride is prepared from plutonium dioxide by the following reaction at temperatures between 400 and 600 °C ... 

Although the existence of a volatile higher fluoride of plutonium had been surmised from tracer experiments, positive evidence of the existence of PuF6 was obtained by Florin (31) who first prepared the compound. An investigation of the preparation and properties of PuF6 was also conducted by Mandleberg et al. (58). but in recent years the compound has been most intensively studied by Weinstock and his collaborators. Plutonium hexafluoride can be prepared by a variety of procedures similar to those used for the preparation of uranium hexafluoride. The most widely used method consists in the fluorination of plutonium tetrafluoride with elemental fluorine. Whereas uranium hexafluoride can be prepared by the analogous reaction at 300°, and neptunium hexafluoride at 500°, the preparation of plutonium hexafluoride by this reaction appears to require a... 

The only examples of compounds of this type are the borohydrides, MIV(BH4)4 (MIV = Th-Pu) and MIV(MeBH3)4 (MIV = Th, U, Np). These compounds are conveniently prepared by reaction, for example, of the metal tetrafluoride with A1(BH4)3 in a sealed tube, followed by vacuum sublimation of the product.159 The neptunium and plutonium compounds are liquids at room temperature and are more volatile than the thorium, protactinium or uranium analogues. 

The volatile plutonium hexafluoride can be prepared by fluorination of the tetrafluoride at 550°C ... 

Both plutonium trifluoride and tetrafluoride can be prepared by hydro-fluorination of plutonium dioxide. The oxidation-reduction relations of plutonium (III) and (IV) are such that it is readily possible to specify which of the fluorides shall be the product. If the reaction is carried out under reducing conditions, then the product is PuF3, and under oxidizing conditions, PuF4 ... 

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