COBALT(III) FLUORIDE Property

Melting point:

927°C

Density 

3.88 g/mL at 25 °C(lit.)

solubility 

reacts with H2O; soluble in ethanol,ethyl ether, benzene

form 

Powder

color 

Light brown

Specific Gravity

3.88

Water Solubility 

Insoluble in water.

Sensitive 

Hygroscopic

Crystal Structure

VF3 type

crystal system

Three sides

Merck 

14,2430

Space group

R3c

Lattice constant

a/nm	b/nm	c/nm	α/o	β/o	γ/o	V/nm3
0.504	0.504	1.322	90	90	120	0.2903

Exposure limits

ACGIH: TWA 0.02 mg/m3; TWA 2.5 mg/m3
NIOSH: IDLH 250 mg/m3; TWA 2.5 mg/m3

Stability:

hygroscopic

CAS DataBase Reference

10026-18-3(CAS DataBase Reference)

EPA Substance Registry System

Cobalt fluoride (CoF3) (10026-18-3)

Safety

Hazard Codes 

C,T,O

Risk Statements 

34

Safety Statements 

26-36/37/39-45

RIDADR 

UN 3260 8/PG 2

WGK Germany 

3

F 

21

Hazard Note 

Toxic/Corrosive/Oxidiser

TSCA 

Yes

HazardClass 

5.1

PackingGroup 

III

HS Code 

28261990

Hazard and Precautionary Statements (GHS)

Symbol(GHS)

Signal word

Danger

Hazard statements

H314Causes severe skin burns and eye damage

Precautionary statements

P260Do not breathe dust/fume/gas/mist/vapours/spray.

P280Wear protective gloves/protective clothing/eye protection/face protection.

P303+P361+P353IF ON SKIN (or hair): Remove/Take off Immediately all contaminated clothing. Rinse SKIN with water/shower.

P305+P351+P338IF IN EYES: Rinse cautiously with water for several minutes. Remove contact lenses, if present and easy to do. Continuerinsing.

P363Wash contaminated clothing before reuse.

COBALT(III) FLUORIDE Chemical Properties,Usage,Production

Chemical Properties

brown powder

Chemical Properties

The heat of formation is —187 kcal mole-1 and the magnetic moment is 1-60 B.M. at 90°K rising to 2.46 B.M. at 293°K; it is thus a high spin compound but not magnetically dilute.
Anhydrous cobalt(III) fluoride turns dark in the presence of traces of water and reacts violently with the liquid-evolving oxygen. When heated in an inert atmosphere above 350°, cobalt(II) fluoride is formed. It reacts vigorously with many elements, e.g. Al, P, As, S, I, being reduced to cobalt(II) fluoride. It is insoluble in alcohol, ether and benzene and is a useful fluorinating agent in organic chemistry.

Physical properties

Light brown hexagonal crystal; density 3.88 g/cm³; moisture sensitive; stable in dry air; melts at 927°C; reacts with water.

Uses

Important fluorinating agent, particularly for complete fluorination of hydrocarbons by the Fowler process.

Uses

Cobalt(III) fluoride is a powerful fluorinating agent.

Preparation

Cobalt(III) fluoride may be prepared by reaction of elemental fluorine with cobalt(II) fluoride, cobalt(II) chloride or cobalt(III) oxide at 300 to 400°C.
2CoF₂ + F₂ → 2CoF₃
2CoCl₂ + 3F₂ → 2CoF₃ + 2Cl₂
It should be stored in a sealed glass ampule, free from moisture.
Electrolytic oxidation of cobalt(II) fluoride in 40% hydrofluoric acid yields hydrated cobalt(III) fluoride, CoF₃·3.5H₂O (3.5 is the stoichiometric amount of water per CoF3 molecule in the crystal lattice).

Hazard

Strong irritant to tissue.

Structure and conformation

It forms hexagonal crystals of density 3.89, isomorphous with iron(III) and aluminium(III) fluorides, the cobalt atoms being octahedraily surrounded by fluorine atoms.