Onium compound

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In chemistry, an onium ion, is a cation formally obtained by the protonation of mononuclear parent hydride of a pnictogen (group 15 of the periodic table), chalcogen (group 16), or halogen (group 17). The oldest-known onium ion, and the namesake for the class, is ammonium, NH+
4
, the protonated derivative of ammonia, NH
3
.[1][2]

The name onium is also used for cations that would result from the substitution of hydrogen atoms in those ions by other groups, such as organic radicals, or halogens; such as tetraphenylphosphonium, (C
6
H
5
)
4
P+
. The substituent groups may be divalent or trivalent, yielding ions such as iminium and nitrilium.[1][2]

A simple onium ion has a charge of +1. A larger ion that has two onium ion subgroups is called a double onium ion, and has a charge of +2. A triple onium ion has a charge of +3, and so on.

Compounds of an onium cation and some other negative ion are known as onium compounds or onium salts.

Onium ions and onium compounds are inversely analogous to -ate ions and ate complexes:

  • Lewis bases form onium ions when the central atom gains one more bond and becomes a positive cation.
  • Lewis acids form -ate ions when the central atom gains one more bond and becomes a negative anion.[3]

Simple onium cations (hydrides with no substitutions)

Group 15 (pnictogen) onium cations

Group 16 (chalcogen) onium cations

Group 17 (halogen) onium cations, halonium ions, H2X+ (protonated hydrogen halides)

Pseudohalogen onium cations

Group 14 (carbon group) onium cations

All are carbonium ions.

Group 13 (boron group) onium cations

Group 18 (noble gas) onium cations

Hydrogen onium cation

  • hydrogenonium, better known as trihydrogen cation, H+
    3
    (protonated [molecular] or [diatomic] hydrogen), found in ionized hydrogen and interstellar space

Onium cations with monovalent substitutions

Onium cations with polyvalent substitutions

  • secondary ammonium cations having one double-bonded substitution, R=NH2+
  • quaternary ammonium cations having one double-bonded substitution and two single-bonded substitutions, R=NR2+
  • quaternary ammonium cations having two double-bonded substitutions, R=N=R+
  • tertiary ammonium cations having one triple-bonded substitution, R≡NH+
  • tertiary ammonium cations having two partially double-bonded substitutions, RNH+R
  • quaternary ammonium cations having one triple-bonded substitution and one single-bonded substitution, R≡NR+
  • tertiary oxonium cations having one triple-bonded substitution, R≡O+
  • tertiary oxonium cations having two partially double-bonded substitutions, RO+R
  • tertiary sulfonium cations having one triple-bonded substitution, R≡S+

Double onium dications

Enium cations

The extra bond is added to a less-common parent hydride, a carbene analog, typically named -ene or -ylene, which is neutral with 2 fewer bonds than the more-common hydride, typically named -ane or -ine.

External links

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 IUPAC definition
  2. 2.0 2.1 George A. Olah (1998), Onium Ions. John Wiley & Sons, 509 pages. ISBN 9780471148777
  3. Advanced Organic Chemistry: Reactions and mechanisms, Maya Shankar Singh, 2007, Dorling Kindersley, ISBN 978-81-317-1107-1