Mercury(II) thiocyanate
| Names | |
|---|---|
| Other names
mercuric thiocyanate
mercuric sulfocyanate | |
| Identifiers | |
| ECHA InfoCard | 100.008.886 |
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
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| Properties | |
| Hg(SCN)2 | |
| Molar mass | 316.79 g/mol |
| Appearance | white monoclinic crystals |
| Density | 3.71 g/cm³, solid |
| Melting point | decomposes at 165°C |
| 0.070 g/100 mL | |
| Solubility | soluble in dilute hydrochloric acid[1] |
| Hazards | |
| NFPA 704 (fire diamond) | |
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Mercury(II) thiocyanate (Hg(SCN)2) is a chemical compound. It was formerly used in pyrotechnics for the long snake-like ash Pharaoh's serpent that forms when a pellet of this compound, often with a small amount of a sugar such as glucose added to serve as supplemental fuel, is ignited. This is extremely dangerous because it produces poisonous mercury vapors.
Mercury(II) thiocyanate is made by reacting a mercury(II) salt (such as mercury(II) chloride) with a thiocyanate salt (such as potassium thiocyanate) in solution in water, producing a precipitate of mercury(II) thiocyanate.
References
- ^ Lide, David R. (1998), Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (87 ed.), Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, pp. 4–70, ISBN 0849305942
External links
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