Diethylmercury
Diethylmercury is a flammable, colorless liquid, and one of the strongest known neurotoxins. This organomercury compound is described as having a slightly sweet smell, though inhaling enough fumes to notice this would be deadly.
This chemical can cross the blood–brain barrier, causing permanent brain damage. It is, however, considerably less toxic than dimethylmercury.
The resulting 2Hg is a dense liquid that boils at 58 °C at 16 torr. This extremely toxic compound is slightly soluble in ethanol and soluble in ether.
Synthesis
Diethylmercury can be obtained from the reaction between ethylmagnesium bromide and mercury(II) chloride.Other methods are also known.