1887.] 



On Antimony Pentachloride. 



383 



were first formed went into solution, and on opening the tube before 

 a lamp at the end of six hours we found much pressure ; a gas 

 smelling like phosgene was liberated. The tube was again closed 

 and heated afresh to 100°. The opening and closing was repeated, 

 first at intervals of six hours, and later, as the pressure diminished, 

 of twelve hours, until after about fourteen days the pressure was no 

 longer noticeable. 



On working up the products of the reaction we found, besides 

 antimony tri- and penta-chlorides, 'phosgene in solution in the 

 chloroform, from which we prepared diphenyl carbamide, m. p. 239°. 

 For the formation of phosgene gas it is not necessary to work in 

 closed tubes. A chloroform solution of the monohydrate, heated to 

 its boiling point on a water-bath, yields a steady stream of phosgene 

 mixed with hydrochloric acid. A similar decomposition takes place 

 when carbon tetrachloride is heated with antimony pentachloride 

 monohydrate in a closed tube to 100°. We will communicate the 

 quantitative relations of this reaction after we have verified our first 

 observations by repeated research. 



One can make the tetrahydrate of antimony pentachloride even 

 more easily than the monohydrate. For this purpose we dissolved 

 29*3 grams of antimony pentachloride in about twice its volume of 

 chloroform, and after surrounding the flask containing this solution 

 with ice, let fall drop by drop 7 grams, the calculated quantity, of 

 water. Again, in this experiment, no hydrochloric acid was given 

 off. The mixture remained at first liquid, but when placed in a 

 vacuum desiccator over sulphuric acid and paraffin, there separated 

 slowly a hard crystalline mass, which was quite insoluble in chloro- 

 form. Two chlorine determinations made after washing the sub- 

 stance with chloroform agree with the formula SbCl 5 H 8 4 . 



1. 0'3963 gram substance gave 0-7696 AgCl. 



2. 0-3414 „ „ 0-6530 AgCl. 



Found. 



Calculated for ( * N 



SbCl 5 H 8 4 . I. II. 



CI.... 47-77 48-04 47-31 



Thus besides the monohydrate of antimony pentachloride a tetra- 

 hydrate also exists, the latter being easily prepared from a chloroform 

 solution of the former by the action of water, and differing from the 

 monohydrate among other things in being insoluble in chloroform. 



From the foregoing evidence it appears that antimony oxychloride, 

 SbOCl 3 , is certainly not formed by the action of water on antimony 

 pentachloride ; but if equal molecules of these substances are allowed 

 to react, the compound SbCl 5 H 2 is formed, which we have called 

 antimony pentachloride monohydrate. This product is most con- 



VOL. XLll. 2 F 



