Iodine trifluoride is an interhalogen compound with the chemical formule IF₃. It is a yellow solid which decomposes above −28 °C. It can be synthesised from the elements, but care must be taken to avoid the formation of IF₅

Iodine pentafluoride

Iodine pentafluoride is an interhalogen compound with chemical formula IF5. It is a fluoride of iodine. It is a colourless or yellow liquid with a density of 3.250 g cm−3. It was first synthesized by Henri Moissan in 1891 by burning solid iodine in fluorine gas...

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Reactions

F₂

Fluorine

Fluorine is the chemical element with atomic number 9, represented by the symbol F. It is the lightest element of the halogen column of the periodic table and has a single stable isotope, fluorine-19. At standard pressure and temperature, fluorine is a pale yellow gas composed of diatomic...

 attacks I₂

Iodine

Iodine is a chemical element with the symbol I and atomic number 53. The name is pronounced , , or . The name is from the , meaning violet or purple, due to the color of elemental iodine vapor....

 to yield IF₃ at −45 °C in CCl₃F

Trichlorofluoromethane

Trichlorofluoromethane, also called freon-11, CFC-11, or R-11, is a chlorofluorocarbon. It is a colorless, nearly odorless liquid that boils at about room temperature.- Uses :It was the first widely used refrigerant...

. Alternatively, at low temperatures, the fluorination reaction I₂ + 3XeF₂

Xenon difluoride

Xenon difluoride is a powerful fluorinating agent with the chemical formula , and one of the most stable xenon compounds. Like most covalent inorganic fluorides it is moisture sensitive. It decomposes on contact with light or water vapour. Xenon difluoride is a dense, white crystalline solid. It...

 → 2IF₃ + 3Xe

Xenon

Xenon is a chemical element with the symbol Xe and atomic number 54. The element name is pronounced or . A colorless, heavy, odorless noble gas, xenon occurs in the Earth's atmosphere in trace amounts...

 can be used. Not much is known about iodine trifluoride as it is so unstable.

Chemical properties

Iodine trifluoride has five electron pairs, and like chlorine trifluoride

Chlorine trifluoride

Chlorine trifluoride is an interhalogen compound with the formula ClF3. This colourless, poisonous, corrosive and very reactive gas condenses to a pale-greenish yellow liquid, the form in which it is most often sold...

 is T-shaped as predicted by VSEPR Theory

VSEPR theory

Valence shell electron pair repulsion theory is a model in chemistry used to predict the shape of individual molecules based upon the extent of electron-pair electrostatic repulsion. It is also named Gillespie–Nyholm theory after its two main developers...

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