copper ii chloride dihydrate formula
Copper(II) chloride is used in chemical industry as catalyst, mordant for dyeing and printing of textiles and aniline dyestuffs. It is also employed in petroleum industry as a deodorizing, desulphurising and purifying agent; in photography, as a fixer and desensitizer reagent; as pigments for glass, ceramics, wood preservative, disinfectant and animal feed additive.
Commonly referred to as cupric chloride, it is yellow or brown hygroscopic powder. It may be formed into green deliquescent crystals.
It is soluble in water, methanol and ethanol and moderately soluble in acetone and ether. It is incompatible with potassium, sodium and oxidizing agents.
Reactions with a variety of organic compounds and metals results in formation of a wide range of complexes, many with “soft” ligands such as phosphines, iodide or cyanide. Some tertiary amines, especially the amides of ethylene and propylene, also induce reduction to give copper complexes.
Synthesis of BINAP and its derivatives:
Copper(II) chloride is a useful catalyst for the chemoselective hydrolysis of semicarbazones to carbonyls in many organic chlorination reactions, including vinyl chloride and 1,2-dichloroethane. It is a key intermediate in the synthesis of benzene-indole amines (BINAP), and it can be used to cleave tetrahydropyranyl ethers and t-butyldimethylsilyl ethers.
It can be produced indirectly from copper ions in solution by electrolysis using an acidic medium. However, this process emits toxic chlorine gas and is not often used for copper chloride production. It can also be produced by mixing a solution of copper ions with hydrochloric acid and removing the other ions to produce the hydrate.