Trifluoramine oxide

Trifluoramine oxide was first discovered in 1966 independently by two different groups. One way to produce it was by an electric discharge in a mixture of oxygen on nitrogen trifluoride. Another even less yielding method is by reacting noble metal fluorides (iridium hexafluoride or platinum hexafluoride) with nitric oxide.{{cite journal |last1=Fox |first1=W. B. |last2=MacKenzie |first2=J. S. |last3=Vanderkooi |first3=N. |last4=Sukornick |first4=B. |last5=Wamser |first5=C. A. |last6=Holmes |first6=J. R. |last7=Eibeck |first7=R. E. |last8=Stewart |first8=B. B. |title=Trifluoramine Oxide |journal=Journal of the American Chemical Society |date=June 1966 |volume=88 |issue=11 |pages=2604–2605 |doi=10.1021/ja00963a051}} It is separated by distillation, and can be purified by treating it with potassium hydroxide solution which reacts with the other fluorine containing molecules produced.

An alternate way to produce it is by burning nitric acid in fluorine, followed by rapid cooling.{{cite book |last1=Powell |first1=P. |title=The Chemistry of the Non-Metals |date=2013 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-94-011-6904-2 |page=134 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4a-3BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA134 |language=en}} Yet another way is the photochemical reaction of fluorine and nitrosyl fluoride:

:{{chem2|F2 + FNO → F3NO}}

This reaction can also happen with heat, but hot fluorine is hard to contain without a reaction with the container.{{cite journal |last1=Fox |first1=W.B. |last2=MacKenzie |first2=J.S. |last3=Vitek |first3=R. |title=The chemistry of trifluoramine oxide. V. Synthesis of F3 no by photochemical fluorination of nitrosyl fluoride |journal=Inorganic and Nuclear Chemistry Letters |date=February 1970 |volume=6 |issue=2 |pages=177–179 |doi=10.1016/0020-1650(70)80336-1}} yet another production route is to thermally decompose nitrosonium hexafluoronickelate(IV):

:{{chem2|[NO]2[NiF6] → ONF + ONF3 + NiF2}}{{cite journal |last1=Bartlett |first1=Neil |last2=Passmore |first2=J. |last3=Wells |first3=E. J. |title=Nitrogen oxide trifluoride |journal=Chemical Communications |date=1966 |issue=7 |pages=213 |doi=10.1039/C19660000213}}

{{chem2|F3NO}} is a colourless gas at standard conditions. It has a critical temperature of 29.5 °C where the density is 0.593 g/cm³. Critical pressure is about 64 atmospheres.

Trifluoramine oxide has a Trouton's constant of 20.7. Heat of vapourisation at the boiling point is 3.85 kcal/mol.

The {{chem2|F3NO}} molecule has C_3V symmetry, with all the N-F bonds being equivalent. The shape is almost a tetrahedron as N-O bond is similar to the N-F bonds in nature.

The nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrum of ¹⁹F has a triplet line around −363 ppm. J_NF is 136 Hz.

The infra red spectrum N-O stretch at 1687 cm⁻¹, N-F stretch at 743 cm⁻¹, unsymmetrical N-F stretch 887 cm⁻¹ ∠ONF bend 528 cm⁻¹, wither other bands at 558, 528, 801, 929, 1055, 1410, 1622, 1772, 2435, and 3345 cm⁻¹. The dipole moment is 0.0390 D.{{cite journal |last1=Kirchhoff |first1=William H. |last2=Lide |first2=David R. |title=Microwave Spectrum, Dipole Moment, and Quadrupole Coupling Constant of Trifluoramine Oxide |journal=The Journal of Chemical Physics |date=July 1969 |volume=51 |issue=1 |pages=467–468 |doi=10.1063/1.1671761|bibcode=1969JChPh..51..467K}}

The N-O bond has 75% double bond character. This differs from the amine oxides where the amine is much more basic and with a positive charge.{{cite journal |last1=Fox |first1=W. B. |last2=MacKenzie |first2=J. S. |last3=McCarthy |first3=E. R. |last4=Holmes |first4=J. R. |last5=Stahl |first5=R. F. |last6=Juurik |first6=R. |title=Chemistry of trifluoramine oxide. I. Synthesis and characterization of trifluoramine |journal=Inorganic Chemistry |date=October 1968 |volume=7 |issue=10 |pages=2064–2067 |doi=10.1021/ic50068a022}} The N-O bond-length is 1.158 Å; the N–F bond-length is 1.431 Å ; the bond angles ∠FNF is 101°; and the three bond angles ∠ONF = 117.{{cite journal |last1=Plato |first1=Vernon |last2=Hartford |first2=William D. |last3=Hedberg |first3=Kenneth |title=Electron-Diffraction Investigation of the Molecular Structure of Trifluoramine Oxide, F3NO |journal=The Journal of Chemical Physics |date=November 1970 |volume=53 |issue=9 |pages=3488–3494 |doi=10.1063/1.1674522}}

Trifluoramine oxide is toxic, killing rats at a concentration between 200 and 500 ppm.

On fluorinating other compounds nitrosyl fluoride (NOF) is formed.{{cite journal|last1=Fox|first1=William B.|last2=Wamser|first2=C. A.|last3=Eibeck|first3=R.|last4=Huggins|first4=D. K.|last5=MacKenzie|first5=James S.|last6=Juurik|first6=R.|title=Chemistry of trifluoroamine oxide. II. Reactions with inorganic substrates|journal=Inorganic Chemistry|date=June 1969|volume=8|issue=6|pages=1247–1249|doi=10.1021/ic50076a010}}

Trifluoramine oxide does not react with water, glass or nickel, making it easier to handle.

The "adducts" formed with the pentafluorides, are actually hexafluoride salts containing the {{chem2|[F2NO]+}} ion (difluorooxoammonium cation).

Trifluoramine oxide reacts slowly with mercury, producing mercury fluorides, and nitrogen oxides. Trifluoramine oxide is fairly stable when heated to 300 °C but slowly breaks up to fluorine and {{chem2|NO2F}}, NOF, {{chem2|NO2}} and NO. The oxygen remains attached to the nitrogen during decomposition.

{{Reflist}}

Category:Nitrogen oxohalides

Category:Nitrogen(V) compounds

Category:Oxyfluorides