Tin triphosphide
Chemical compound
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tin triphosphide is a binary inorganic compound of tin metal and phosphorus with the chemical formula SnP3.[1]
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| Identifiers | |
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3D model (JSmol) |
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| Properties | |
| P3Sn | |
| Molar mass | 211.631 g·mol−1 |
| Appearance | black solid |
| Density | 4.25 g/cm3 |
| Melting point | 580 °C (1,076 °F; 853 K) |
| insoluble | |
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Structure
X-ray crystallography reveals that tin triphosphide is not a triphosphide. It is a hexaphosphide, with P66- rings. These ruffled P6 rings form three short (2.66 Å) and three long (2.95 Å) Sn-P bonds. The result is that Sn(II) adopts highly distorted octahedral geometry. The structure of tin triphosphide resembles that of gray arsenic, which also features corrugated, linked six-membered (As6) rings, wherein each arsenic atom has a highly distorted octahedral geometry. Germanium triphosphide and tin triphosphide are similar structurally as well.
Tin triphosphide forms triclinic crystals, spatial group R3m with six formula units in a unit cell of dimensions a = 7.378 Å and c = 10.512 Å.[2][3]
Preparation and occurrence
Tin triphosphide can be formed from the fusion of stoichiometric amounts of both elements at 580 °C:
- 4 Sn + 3 P4 → 4 SnP3
SnP3 has been evaluated for use in energy storage devices.[4]