One mole of complex compound Co(NH) Cl gives 3 mol of ions on dissolut...
Structure Determination of Complex Compound Co(NH)Cl
Given Information:
- One mole of Co(NH)Cl gives 3 mol of ions on dissolution in water.
- One mol of the same complex reacts with two mol of AgNO solution to form two mol of AgCl(s).
Step 1: Determine the Coordination Number of Cobalt
- Since one mole of Co(NH)Cl gives 3 mol of ions, the complex must be a cation with a charge of +3.
- The only way for cobalt to have a +3 charge is if it has lost three electrons, making it a d6 ion.
- The most common coordination numbers for d6 ions are 4 and 6.
- However, since the complex only gives 2 mol of AgCl(s) when two mol of AgNO are added, the coordination number must be 4 since only four chloride ions are required to form 2 mol of AgCl(s).
Step 2: Determine the Geometry of the Complex
- A coordination number of 4 can result in either a tetrahedral or a square planar geometry.
- To determine the geometry, we need to know the number of ligands and whether they are strong-field or weak-field ligands.
- The chloride ligand is a weak-field ligand, which means it does not create a large splitting of the d-orbitals.
- Ammonia is a strong-field ligand, which means it creates a large splitting of the d-orbitals.
- A tetrahedral geometry would require all four ligands to be the same, which is not the case here.
- Therefore, the complex has a square planar geometry.
Step 3: Write the Formula for the Complex
- The formula for a square planar complex is usually [MA2B2] or [MAB3].
- In this case, the chloride ligands are weak-field ligands and the ammonia ligands are strong-field ligands.
- Therefore, the formula for the complex is [Co(NH)Cl]Cl.