Indium(III) chloride
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586 °C
800 °C
(sublimes 498 °C
in a vacuum)
materials in their standard state
(at 25 °C, 100 kPa)
Infobox references
Indium(III) chloride is the chemical compound with the formula InCl3. This colorless salt finds some use in organic synthesis as a Lewis acid. It is also the most available soluble derivatives of indium.[1]
[edit] Synthesis and structure
Being a relatively electropositive metal, indium reacts readily with chlorine to give the trichloride. A synthesis has been reported using an electrochemical cell in a mixed methanol-benzene solution.[2]
Like AlCl3 and TlCl3, InCl3 crystallizes as a layered structure consisting of close-packed chloride arrangement containing layers of In(III) centers. The motif is akin to that seen for YCl3.[3] In contrast, GaCl3 and InI3 crystallize as dimers containing Ga2Cl6 and In2I6 subunits, respectively.
[edit] Catalyst in chemistry
Indium chloride is a lewis acid catalyst in organic reactions such as Friedel-Crafts acylations and Diels-Alder reactions. As an example of the latter[4] The reaction proceeds at room temperature, with 1 mole% catalyst loading in an acetonitrile-water solvent mixture. The first step is a Knoevenagel condensation between the barbituric acid and the aldehyde, the second step is a reverse electron-demand Diels-Alder reaction.
which is a multicomponent reaction of N.N'-dimethyl-barbituric acid, benzaldehyde and ethyl vinyl ether. With catalyst the reported chemical yield is 90% and the percentage trans isomer is 70%. Without the catalyst added the yield drops to 65% with 50% trans product.
