Plutonium(III) fluoride
Unit cell, ball and stick model of plutonium(III) fluoride
Names
IUPAC name
Plutonium(III) fluoride
Systematic IUPAC name
Other names
Plutonic fluoride
Plutonium fluoride
Plutonium trifluoride
Identifiers
ChemSpider
InChI=1S/3FH.Pu/h3*1H;/q;;;+3/p-3
Y Key: DBYIUAMLRDFZJJ-UHFFFAOYSA-K
Y
Properties
F 3 Pu
Molar mass
−1
Appearance
Violet, opaque crystals
Density
9.3 g cm−3
Melting point
1,396 °C (2,545 °F; 1,669 K)[ 2]
Boiling point
2,000 °C (3,630 °F; 2,270 K) (decomposes)[ 1]
Related compounds
Plutonium(III) chloride
Samarium(III) fluoride
Related fluoroplutoniums
Plutonium tetrafluoride Plutonium hexafluoride
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their
standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
Chemical compound
Plutonium(III) fluoride or plutonium trifluoride is the chemical compound composed of plutonium and fluorine with the formula PuF3 . This salt forms violet crystals. Plutonium(III) fluoride has the LaF3 structure where the coordination around the plutonium atoms is complex and usually described as tri-capped trigonal prismatic.[ 3]
Reactions
A plutonium(III) fluoride precipitation method has been investigated as an alternative to the typical plutonium peroxide method of recovering plutonium from solution, such as that from a nuclear reprocessing plant.[ 4] Los Alamos National Laboratory reported a less effective recovery than the traditional method,[ 5] United States Office of Scientific and Technical Information found it to be one of the more effective methods.[ 6]
Plutonium(III) fluoride can be used for manufacture of the plutonium-gallium alloy instead of more difficult to handle metallic plutonium.
References
^ Chemistry: Periodic Table: Plutonium: compound data (plutonium (III) fluoride) , retrieved 2008-06-20 [permanent dead link ] ^ Lide, David R. (1998), Handbook of Chemistry and Physics ISBN 0-8493-0594-2 , retrieved 2008-06-20 ^ Wells A.F. (1984) Structural Inorganic Chemistry 5th edition Oxford Science Publications ISBN 0-19-855370-6 .
^
Gupta, C. K.; Mukherjee, T. K. (1990), Hydrometallurgy in Extraction Processes 206– 208, ISBN 0-8493-6805-7 OCLC 21197603 , retrieved 2008-06-20
^
Winchester, R. S. (1957), Aqueous Decontamination of Plutonium from Fission Product Elements (PDF) , Los Alamos, NM: Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory of the University of California (published 1958), pp. 9– 10, retrieved 2008-06-20
^
Martella, L. L.; Saba, M. T.; Campbell, G. K. (1984), Laboratory-scale evaluations of alternative plutonium precipitation methods doi :10.2172/5318991 , OSTI 5318991
Plutonium(II) Plutonium(III) Plutonium(IV) Plutonium(V) Plutonium(VI) Plutonium(VIII)
Salts and covalent derivatives of the
fluoride ion
PF− 6 , AsF− 6 , SbF− 6 compoundsAlF2− 5 , AlF3− 6 compoundschlorides, bromides, iodides SiF2− 6 , GeF2− 6 compoundsOxyfluorides Organofluorides with transition metal, nitric acids bifluorides thionyl, phosphoryl,
