Unprecedented Formation of Potassium Borate Based Carbonate from Chloral Hydrate, Potassium Carbonate and Boric Acid

Abstract

The structure of the reaction product of boric acid, chloral hydrate, and potassium carbonate in H2O, potassium bis(carbonato)borate hydrate K[B(CO2-μ-O-CO2)2]•2H2O, was determined by X-ray crystallography. The compound crystallized in the orthorhombic system, and was characterized to be in the space group Aba2, with cell parameters of a = 11.0579(10)Å, b = 11.1695(10)Å, c = 9.0504(9)Å, Z = 4, and V = 1117.83(18)Å 3 . In the crystal structure, intermolecular O-H•••O hydrogen bonds link the molecules into a supramolecular structure, in which they may be effective in stabilizing the structure. The B atom espouses a distorted tetrahedral geometry with four O atoms of carbonate ligands.