Sulfur dichloride
Sulfur dichloride is the chemical compound with the formula. This cherry-red liquid is the simplest sulfur chloride and one of the most common, and it is used as a precursor to organosulfur compounds. It is a highly corrosive and toxic substance, and it reacts on contact with water to form chlorine-containing acids.
Chlorination of sulfur
is produced by the chlorination of either elemental sulfur or disulfur dichloride. The process occurs in a series of steps, some of which are:The addition of chlorine| to has been proposed to proceed via a mixed valence intermediate. undergoes even further chlorination to give SCl4|, but this species is unstable at near room temperature. It is likely that several exist where n > 2.
Disulfur dichloride,, is a common impurity in. Separation of from is possible via distillation with Phosphorus trichloride| to form an azeotrope of 99% purity. Sulfur dichloride loses chlorine slowly at room temperature, converting to disulfur dichloride and eventually higher sulfanes. Pure samples may be stored in sealed glass ampules which develop a slight positive pressure of chlorine, halting the decomposition.
Use of in chemical synthesis
is used in organic synthesis. It adds to alkenes to give chloride-substituted thioethers. Illustrative is its addition to 1,5-cyclooctadiene to give a bicyclic thioether A well tested method for the production of the mustard gas bissulfide, is the addition of ethylene to sulfur dichloride:is also a precursor to several inorganic sulfur compounds. Treatment with fluoride salts gives Sulfur tetrafluoride| via the decomposition of the intermediate sulfur difluoride. With, reacts to give "lower" sulfanes such as. oxidizes to.
Reaction with ammonia affords sulfur nitrides related to tetrasulfur tetranitride|. Treatment of with primary amines gives sulfur diimides. One example is di-t-butylsulfurdiimide.