Iridium

Base Information

• Chemical Name: Iridium
• CAS No.: 7439-88-5
• Deprecated CAS: 1809322-71-1,1809322-79-9
• Molecular Formula: Ir
• Molecular Weight: 192.22
• Hs Code.: 28439000
• European Community (EC) Number: 231-095-9
• DSSTox Substance ID: DTXSID0064674
• Nikkaji Number: J95.172B
• Wikipedia: Iridium
• Wikidata: Q877,Q27461515
• NCI Thesaurus Code: C95183
• Mol file: 7439-88-5.mol

Synonyms:Iridiumblack;Iridium, elemental;

Chemical Property of Iridium

Chemical Property:

• Appearance/Colour: Black Powder
• Melting Point: 2450 ºC(lit.)
• Boiling Point: 4130 ºC(lit.)
• PSA: 0.00000
• Density: 1.05 g/mL at 25 ºC
• LogP: 0.00000
• Storage Temp.: Flammables area
• Solubility.: Soluble in aqua regia.
• Water Solubility.: INSOLUBLE
• Hydrogen Bond Donor Count: 0
• Hydrogen Bond Acceptor Count: 0
• Rotatable Bond Count: 0
• Exact Mass: 192.96292
• Heavy Atom Count: 1
• Complexity: 0

Purity/Quality:

99.9% ^*data from raw suppliers

Iridium ^*data from reagent suppliers

Safty Information:

• Pictogram(s): Xi,F
• Hazard Codes: F,Xi
• Statements: 36-36/37/38-11
• Safety Statements: 16-26-36/37/39

MSDS Files:

SDS file from LookChem

Total 1 MSDS from other Authors

Useful:

• Chemical Classes: Metals -> Elements, Metallic
• Canonical SMILES: [Ir]
• Recent ClinicalTrials: A Study With IPX056 in Subjects With Spasticity Associated With Multiple Sclerosis
• Description: Iridium metal was detected in the black residue of aqua regia extract of platinum and identified as an element by British chemist Smithson Tennant in 1803. Around the same time, existence of this new metal was proposed by Vauquelin and deFourcroy in France in the course of their extraction of platinum by aqua regia. Tennant named this element Iridium after the Greek word, Iris, meaning rainbow. Iridium occurs in small amounts in native platinum or platinum metal alloys. Iridium and osmium together constitute “osmiridium,” which is resistant to chemical attack and is a byproduct of platinum extraction.
• Uses: The most important use of iridium is as an alloying metal for platinum and palladium. Such alloys are used for jewelry, decorative purposes, electrical contacts, thermocouples, crucibles, electrodes, hypodermic needles, and medical accessories. Iridium enhances resistance of platinum to chemical attack and corrosion. It also enhances hardness and tensile strength. The radioisotope Ir-192 is used in examination of ferrous welds and in other radiographic applications. Iridium’s most common use is as an alloy metal that, when added to platinum, makes itharder and more durable. It is also mixed with other metals to make electrical contacts, thermocouples(two dissimilar metals joined to form a special type of thermometer), and instrumentsthat will withstand high temperatures without breaking down. It is also used to makespecial laboratory vessels because iridium will not react with most chemical substances. Analloy of iridium and platinum is used as the standard kilogram weight because it is noncorrosiveand will not oxidize and, thus, change its weight over long periods of time.The radioisotope, iridium-192, is used to treat cancer and to take X-ray pictures of metalcastings to detect flaws. Iridium is also used as a catalyst for several chemical reactions. The primary use of iridium is as a hardening agent in platinum alloys. Other uses are for the making of crucibles and devices that require high temperatures. Osmium/iridium alloys are used for compass bearings. Iridium is commonly used in complexes like Ir(mppy)3 and other complexes in polymer LED technology to increase the efficiency from 25% to about 100% due to triplet harvesting. Used in high-dose radiation therapy for the treatment of prostate and other forms of cancer. Iridium is used in tips of ballpoint pens. Iridium is used as a catalyst for carbonylation of methanol to create acetic acid. At one time, iridium as an alloy with platinum, was used in bushing the vents of heavy ordnance and, in a finely powdered condition (iridium black) for painting porcelain black. In manufacturing crucibles; in hardening platinum; in making nibs for fountain-pen points.
• Physical properties: Iridium is a hard, brittle, white, metallic substance that is almost impossible to machine.It is neither ductile nor malleable. Iridium will only oxidize at high temperatures and is themost corrosive-resistant metal known. This is why it was used to make the standard meter barthat is an alloy of 90% platinum and 10% iridium.At about the time of the French Revolution, it was decided to determine the length ofthe meter bar by first calculating the distance from the North Pole to the equator runningthrough Paris. This distance was then divided into equal lengths of 1/10,000,000. A singleunit of this distance was then called a “meter” (“measure” in Greek). This platinum-iridiummeter bar, currently preserved in France, was for many years the standard unit of lengthin the metric system that is based on the decimal system. However, this metal bar is nolonger used as the standard meter. Instead, the meter is now defined by scientists in termsof the length of the path traveled by light in a vacuum at the time of 1/299,792,458 of asecond.Iridium is highly resistant to attack by other chemicals and is one of the most dense elementsfound on Earth. Its melting point is 2,410°C, its boiling point is 4,130°C, and itsdensity is 22.560 g/cm3.