Iodine pentafluoride


Iodine pentafluoride is an interhalogen compound with chemical formula IF5. It is one of the fluorides of iodine. It is a colorless liquid, although impure samples appear yellow. It is used as a fluorination reagent and even a solvent in specialized syntheses.

Preparation

It was first synthesized by Henri Moissan in 1891 by burning solid iodine in fluorine gas. This exothermic reaction is still used to produce iodine pentafluoride, although the reaction conditions have been improved.

Reactions

IF5 reacts vigorously with water forming hydrofluoric acid and iodic acid:
Upon treatment with fluorine, it converts to iodine heptafluoride:
It has been used as a solvent for handling metal fluorides. For example, the reduction of osmium hexafluoride with iodine is conducted in a solution in iodine pentafluoride:
Primary amines react with iodine pentafluoride forming nitriles after hydrolysis

Popular culture

Iodine pentafluoride is available as a "Special Gas" for flooding into the atmosphere of the escape shuttle in the terminal sequence of 1979 film Alien.