--%>

Explain polyhalogen compounds with examples.

Carbon compounds containing more than one halogen atom are called polyhalogen compounds. Most of these compounds are valuable in industry and agriculture. Some important polyhalogen compounds are described as follows:

    
Dichloromethane or methylene chloride, CH3Cl2

Dichloromethane is prepared industrially by direct chlorination of methane. The mixture of CH3Cl, CH2Cl2, CHCl2 and CCl4 so obtained is separated by fractional distillation.

Properties

Dichloromethane is a sweet smelling volatile liquid and its boiling point is 313 K.

Dichloromethane harms the human central nervous system. Exposure to lower levels of dichloromethane in air can lead to slightly impaired hearing and vision. Higher levels of dichloromethane in air can cause dizziness, nauses and numbness in the fingers and toes. Direct skin contact with methylene chloride causes strong burning and mild redness to the skin. Direct contact with eyes can burn cornea.

Uses
    
Because of its low boiling point and low inflammability it is used as extraction solvent in pharmaceutical and food industries. It is also used as solvent for carrying out many organic reactions in research laboratories.
    
It is used as a metal finishing and cleaning solvent.
    
It is also used as a propellent in aerosols.
    
Trichloromethane (Chloroform), CHCl3 

Preparation
    
From methane: chloroform is manufactured by chlorination of methane in the presence of light or catalysts.
1278_polyhalogen compounds.png                                     


The mixture of CH3Cl, CH2Cl2, CHCl3 and CCl4 can be separated by fractional distillation.
    
From chloral hydrate, pure chloroform can be obtained by distilling chloral or chloral hydrate with concentrated aqueous solution or KOH solution.
                    
NaOH + CCl3CHO  1950_electrode potential.png  HCOONa + CHCl2
             
NaOH + CCl3CH(OH)2  1950_electrode potential.png  HCOOna + CHCl3 + H2O

    
Laboratory method: in this method chloroform is obtained from ethanol or acetone by reaction with a paste of bleaching powder and water.

In this reaction, bleaching powder serves as a source of chlorine which first oxidizes ethanol acetaldehyte, which is then further chlorinated to chloral. Chloral reacts with Ca(OH)2, given by CaOCl2, to give chloroform and calcium formate.

   Related Questions in Chemistry

  • Q : Relationship between free energy and

    The free energy of a gas depends on the pressure that confines the gas. The standard free energies of formation, like those allow predictions to be made of the possibility of a reaction at 25°C for each reagent at 

  • Q : What is electrolysis? Explain with

    Passage of a current through a solution can produce an electrolysis reaction.Much additional information on the properties of the ions in an aqueous solution can be obtained from studies of the passage of a direct current (dc) through a cell containing a s

  • Q : What is Henry law constant and its

    1. The units of Henry Law constant are same as those of pressure, i.e. torr or h bar. 2. Different gases have dissimilar values of Henry law constant. The values of KH for some gases in water are given in tabl

  • Q : Problem on Clausius equation of state

    If a gas can be described by the Clausius equation of state: P (V-b) = RT Where b is a constant, then:  (a) Obtain an expression for the residual vo

  • Q : What is solvent dielectric effect?

    Ionic dissociation depends on the dielectric constant of the solvent.The Arrhenius that ions are in aqueous solutions in equilibrium with parent molecular species allows many of the properties of ionic solutions to be understood. But difficulties began to

  • Q : Calculating value of molar solution

    Choose the right answer from following. An X molal solution of a compound in benzene has mole fraction of solute equal to 0.2. The value of X is: (a)14 (b) 3.2 (c) 4 (d) 2

  • Q : Importance of organic chemistry

    Describe the importance of organic chemistry?

  • Q : Calculation of concentration of the

    Choose the right answer from following. 200ml of a solution contains 5.85 dissolved sodium chloride. The concentration of the solution will be(Na= 23: cl = 35.5 ) (a) 1 molar (b) 2 molar (c) 0.5 molar (d) 0.25 molar

  • Q : Some basic concepts of chemistry an

    an atom of an element is 10.1 times heavier than the mass of a carbon atom.What is its mass in amu?

  • Q : Molar concentration Choose the right

    Choose the right answer from following. Molar concentration (M) of any solution : a) No. of moles of solute/Volume of solution in litre (b) No. of gram equivalent of solute / volume of solution in litre (c) No. of moles os solute/ Mass of solvent in kg  (