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Chemical compound From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lanthanum chloride is the inorganic compound with the formula LaCl3. It is a common salt of lanthanum which is mainly used in research. It is a white solid that is highly soluble in water and alcohols.
Anhydrous | |||
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Names | |||
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Other names
Lanthanum trichloride | |||
Identifiers | |||
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3D model (JSmol) |
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ChEBI | |||
ChemSpider | |||
ECHA InfoCard | 100.030.202 | ||
EC Number |
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PubChem CID |
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UNII |
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CompTox Dashboard (EPA) |
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Properties | |||
LaCl3 | |||
Molar mass | 245.264 g/mol (anhydrous) 353.36 g/mol (hexahydrate) 371.37 g/mol (heptahydrate) | ||
Appearance | white odorless powder hygroscopic | ||
Density | 3.84 g/cm3[1] | ||
Melting point | 858 °C (1,576 °F; 1,131 K) (anhydrous)[1] | ||
Boiling point | 1,000 °C (1,830 °F; 1,270 K) (anhydrous) | ||
957 g/L (25 °C)[1] | |||
Solubility | soluble in ethanol (heptahydrate) | ||
Structure[2] | |||
hexagonal (UCl3 type), hP8 | |||
P63/m, No. 176 | |||
a = 0.74779 nm, b = 0.74779 nm, c = 0.43745 nm | |||
Formula units (Z) |
2 | ||
Tricapped trigonal prismatic,(nine-coordinate) | |||
Related compounds | |||
Other anions |
Lanthanum oxide | ||
Other cations |
Cerium(III) chloride | ||
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Anhydrous lanthanum(III) chloride can be produced by the ammonium chloride route.[3][4][5] In the first step, lanthanum oxide is heated with ammonium chloride to produce the ammonium salt of the pentachloride:
In the second step, the ammonium chloride salt is converted to the trichlorides by heating in a vacuum at 350-400 °C:
Lanthanum chloride is also used in biochemical research to block the activity of divalent cation channels, mainly calcium channels. Doped with cerium, it is used as a scintillator material.[6]
In organic synthesis, lanthanum trichloride functions as a mild Lewis acid for converting aldehydes to acetals.[7]
The compound has been identified as a catalyst for the high pressure oxidative chlorination of methane to chloromethane with hydrochloric acid and oxygen.[8]
Also used in the field of geology as a very dilute solution, which when combined with the proper acids can help identify small >1% Strontium content in powdered rock samples.
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