Description

The synthesis and behavior of inorganic and organometallic compounds are the focus of inorganic chemistry. Compounds without a carbon base are the focus of this branch of chemistry, which is also known as organic chemistry. Since organometallic chemistry is a subfield of chemistry, there is a great deal of overlap between the two fields. It is used in catalysis, materials science, pigments, surfactants, coatings, medications, fuels and agriculture, among other areas of the chemical industry.

Classes of Inorganic Compounds

Ionic compounds, in which cations and anions bond together through ionic bonds, make up a large number of inorganic compounds. Magnesium chloride, which consists of magnesium cations and chloride anions and sodium oxide, which consists of sodium cations and oxide anions, are two examples of salts, which are ionic compounds. The bulk compound of any salt is electrically neutral because the proportions of the ions are such that the electric charges cancel each other out. The ionization potential (for cations) or the electron affinity (for anions) of the parent elements can be used to infer how easy it is to form the ions, which are described by their oxidation state. Oxides, carbonates, sulfates and halides are important classes of inorganic compounds. High melting points are characteristic of many inorganic compounds. The melting point of many inorganic compounds is high, making crystallization simple. Some salts are much easier to dissolve in water than others. Double displacement is the simplest inorganic reaction when two salts are mixed and the ions swap without changing their oxidation states. Redox reactions occur when one reactant, the oxidant, loses its oxidation state and another, the reductant, gains it. The end result is an electron exchange. A fundamental idea in electrochemistry is that electron exchange can take place in indirect ways, such as in batteries. In acid-base chemistry, a reaction can occur by exchanging protons when one reactant contains hydrogen atoms. A Lewis acid is any chemical species that can bind to electron pairs in a more general sense; conversely, a Lewis base is any molecule that tends to donate an electron pair. The HSAB theory is a refinement of acid-base interactions that takes polarizability and ion size into account. Minerals are common natural sources of inorganic compounds. Iron sulfide in the form of pyrite or calcium sulfate in the form of gypsum can be found in soil. Biomolecules are another example of multitasking inorganic compounds: As electrolytes (sodium chloride), for storing energy and for building (the DNA polyphosphate backbone). Ammonium nitrate was the first significant man-made inorganic compound. It was used in the Haber process to fertilize soil. Vanadium (V) oxide and titanium chloride are examples of inorganic compounds that are synthesized for use as catalysts or reagents in organic chemistry. Organometallic chemistry, cluster chemistry and bioinorganic chemistry are all subfields of inorganic chemistry. Inorganic chemistry is currently conducting research in these areas to develop new therapies, superconductors and catalysts. The science of inorganic chemistry is very practical. Traditionally, a nation's sulfuric acid productivity served as a measure of its economic size. Another practical application of industrial inorganic chemistry is the production of fertilizers, which frequently begins with the Haber-Bosch procedure. Compounds are categorized based on their properties in descriptive inorganic chemistry. Compounds are grouped together based on their structural similarity, with the heaviest element (the element with the highest atomic weight)'s position in the periodic table serving as part of the classification. Almost any organic or inorganic compound can serve as a ligand in modern coordination compounds. The term metal typically refers to trans-lanthanides and trans-actinides as well as metals from groups 3-13; however, from a certain point of view, coordination complexes can be applied to any chemical compound.

Sulfur and Distillable White

Werner's separation of two enantiomers, an early demonstration that chirality is not inherent to organic compounds, hints at the rich stereochemistry of coordination complexes. Supramolecular coordination chemistry is one of the subject areas covered in this specialization. Since the beginning of chemistry, main group compounds like elemental sulfur and distillable white phosphorus have been known. Not only did Lavoisier and Priestley discover oxygen, which is a crucial diatomic gas, but their experiments also opened the door to describing compounds and reactions in terms of stoichiometric ratios. Carl and Fritz discovered a practical method for the synthesis of ammonia with iron catalysts. This demonstrated the significance of inorganic chemical synthesis. Because they contain organic groups, many main group compounds can also be categorized as organometallic. Compounds of the main group can also be found in nature, like DNA's phosphate, so they could be considered bioinorganic. In contrast, inorganic organic compounds, such as fullerenes, buckytubes and binary carbon oxides, can be categorized as such. In their neutral state, noble gases are elements that are stable as lone atoms because they have filled valence electron shells. In the past, they were thought to be inert, but there are now ways to react with them. The larger parts of the group are tending to be more reactive. Xenon and krypton can combine with extremely electronegative elements to produce fluorides, oxides and solid ionic compounds because they are easier to ionize. Noble gases that are not directly coordinated in clathrates or endohedral fullerenes can also be trapped in solids. Transition metal compounds are those that contain metals in groups 4 to 11. Although frequently categorized as main group compounds, compounds containing a metal from group 3 or 12 may also be included in this group from time to time. Coordination chemistry in transition metal compounds is extensive, ranging from tetrahedral for titanium, square planar for some nickel complexes and octahedral for cobalt coordination complexes. Compounds that play a significant role in biology, like hemoglobin's iron, contain a variety of transition metals. This group is typically considered to be present in organometallic compounds. These species metal may be a transition metal or a member of the main group. Operationally, an organometallic compound can include highly lipophilic complexes like metal carbonyls and even metal alkoxides under a looser definition.