Chemistry:Ammonium heptamolybdate

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Ammonium heptamolybdate
Heptamolybdenan amonný.JPG
Names
IUPAC name
Ammonium docosaoxoheptamolybdate(6–)
Other names
Ammonium molybdate
Ammonium paramolybdate
(see text)
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ChemSpider
EC Number
  • 234-320-9
UNII
Properties
(NH4)6Mo7O24
Molar mass 1163.9 g/mol
1235.86 g/mol (tetrahydrate)
Appearance white solid
Density 2.498 g/cm3
Melting point ~90 ˚C (loses water molecule)
190 °C (decomp.)
65.3 g / 100 ml (tetrahydrate)
Hazards
Main hazards Irritant
Safety data sheet External MSDS
NFPA 704 (fire diamond)
Flammability code 0: Will not burn. E.g. waterHealth code 2: Intense or continued but not chronic exposure could cause temporary incapacitation or possible residual injury. E.g. chloroformReactivity code 0: Normally stable, even under fire exposure conditions, and is not reactive with water. E.g. liquid nitrogenSpecial hazards (white): no codeNFPA 704 four-colored diamond
0
2
0
Flash point Non-flammable
Related compounds
Other anions
Ammonium orthomolybdate
Ammonium dimolybdate
Other cations
Potassium paramolybdate
Related compounds
Molybdenum(VI) oxide
Molybdic acid
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Infobox references

Ammonium heptamolybdate is the inorganic compound whose chemical formula is (NH4)6Mo7O24, normally encountered as the tetrahydrate. A dihydrate is also known. It is a colorless solid, often referred to as ammonium paramolybdate or simply as ammonium molybdate, although "ammonium molybdate" can also refer to ammonium orthomolybdate, (NH4)2MoO4, and several other compounds. It is one of the more common molybdenum compounds.[1]

Synthesis

Ammonium heptamolybdate is easily prepared by dissolving molybdenum trioxide in an excess of aqueous ammonia and evaporating the solution at room temperature. While the solution evaporates, the excess of ammonia escapes. This method results in the formation of six-sided transparent prisms of the tetrahydrate of ammonium heptamolybdate.[2]

Solutions of ammonium paramolybdate react with acids to form molybdic acid and an ammonium salt. The pH value of a concentrated solution will lie between 5 and 6.

Structure

The compound was first analyzed crystallographically by Lindqvist, but has been reanalyzed.[3] All Mo centers are octahedral. Some oxide ligands are terminal, some doubly bridging, and a few are triply bridging ligands. thumb|224px|left|The salt contains the heptamolybdate hexaanion.

Uses

  • as an analytical reagent to measure the amount of phosphates, silicates, arsenates and lead in aqueous solution (e.g. pigments, river water, sea water etc.)[4]
  • in the production of molybdenum metal and ceramics
  • in the preparation of dehydrogenation and desulfurization catalysts
  • in the fixing of metals
  • in electroplating
  • in fertilizers for crops.
  • as a negative stain in biological electron microscopy, typically in the 3–5% (vol/vol) concentration range and in the presence of trehalose;[5] or at saturated concentration to perform cryo-negative staining.[6][7]
  • For the detection of recreational drugs as a component of the Froehde reagent

Related compounds

Potassium heptamolybdate, also obtained as the tetrahydrate, is very similar to the ammonium salt.[3]

Safety

Molybdates are typically of low toxicity, so much so that few reports of incidents have ever been reported.[1]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Sebenik, Roger F. (2000). "Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry". Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH. doi:10.1002/14356007. 
  2. L. Svanberg & H. Struve, J. pr. Ch. 44 [1848], p. 282; cited in Gmelin's Handbuch für Anorganische Chemie, 53, p. 255.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Evans, H.T., Jr.; Gatehouse, B. M.; Leverett, P. "Crystal Structure of the Heptamolybdate(VI) (paramolybdate) ion, (Mo7O24)6−, in the ammonium and potassium tetrahydrate salts" Journal of the Chemical Society. Dalton Transactions, Inorganic Chemistry1975, p.505-p514.
  4. Parsons, T.; Maita, V. & Lalli, C. (1984). A manual of chemical and biological methods for seawater analysis. Oxford: Pergamon.
  5. Harris, J. R. and Horne, R. W. 1991. "Negative staining", in Harris J. R. (Ed.), Electron Microscopy in Biology, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  6. Adrian, Marc; Dubochet, Jacques; Fuller, Stephen D.; Harris, J. Robin (1998). "Cryo-negative staining". Micron 29 (2–3): 145–160. doi:10.1016/S0968-4328(97)00068-1. PMID 9684350. 
  7. De Carlo, S.; El-Bez, C.; Alvarez-Rúa, C.; Borge, J.; Dubochet, J. (2002). "Cryo-negative staining reduces electron-beam sensitivity of vitrified biological particles". Journal of Structural Biology 138 (3): 216–226. doi:10.1016/S1047-8477(02)00035-7. PMID 12217660. 

See also

Phosphate test aka Deniges' method links to here.