Photochemical Synthesis of Tungsten Pentafluoride, WF5

Abstract

A new synthetic route for the synthesis of WF5 utilizing a mercury photosensitized reduction of tungsten hexafluoride with H2 is described. Crystals of WF5 were studied using single-crystal X-ray diffraction, resulting in the first-reported crystal structure of WF5. Powder X-ray diffraction studied at room-temperature showed the compound was phase-pure. The IR spectrum of WF5 was reinvestigated and interpreted with the use of solid-state quantum-chemical calculations using the DFT-PBE0 density functional method. The compound synthesized herein was free of HF and moisture but may have contained minute amounts of WOF4, that were only observed in the IR spectrum.