Titanium Tetrachloride - TiCl4
Titanium tetrachloride or titanium (IV) chloride is the chemical compound with the formula TiCl4.
Pure-Titanium Tetrachloride (TiCl4) is transparency & no-colored liquid, although Crude-TiCl4 before refining is slightly red-brown liquid. TiCl4 itself is not dangerous in inflammability & explosion, if, however, TiCl4 reacts with water, white smoke is generated, which is one of the special feature. TiCl4 is active against water, and generates hydrochloric acid (HCl).
Production method: By reacting Rutile ore(TiO2) and Chlorine(Cl) in furnace, crude-TiCl4 is produced & the crude-TiCl4 is distillated in distillation furnaces. Finally Pure-TiCl4 is produced.
TiCl4 is a dense, colourless distillable liquid, although crude samples may be yellow or even red-brown. It is one of the rare transition metal chlorides that is in liquid state at room temperature, VCl4 being another example. Most metal chlorides are polymers, where the chloride atoms bridge between the metals. The attraction between the individual TiCl4 molecules is weak, primarily van der Waals forces, & these weak interactions result in low melting and boiling points, similar to those of CCl4. This distinctive property arises from the fact that TiCl4 is molecular; that is, each TiCl4 molecule is relatively weakly associated with its neighbours.
Acute Effects: Titanium tetrachloride is highly irritating to the skin, eyes, & mucous membranes in humans. Acute (short-term) exposure may result in surface skin burns, marked congestion of mucous membranes of the pharynx, vocal cords, & trachea, and stenosis (constriction) of the larynx, trachea, & upper bronchi in humans. Acute exposure may also damage the cornea!
Usage of TiCl4:
- To modify a grain structure of Aluminum Alloy
- A main material for TiO2 which is used as pigment of paint ink
- In producing Metallic Titanium
- For catalysts in producing polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP).
- A material for titanium compound which is used in leather processing
- A material for TiN, TiC and TiB2 which is a material for Chemical Vaporized Diffusion
- Coating the surface of special glasses and ceramic products
- A material for electronics parts including TiO2 and BaTiO3
(wikipedia.org, lakes-environmental.com, sumitomocorp.co.jp)
