Except where noted otherwise, data are given for
materials in their standard state
(at 25 °C, 100 kPa)
Infobox disclaimer and references
Oxygen difluoride is the chemical compound with the formula OF2. As predicted by VSEPR theory, the molecule adopts a bent structure like H2O, but it has very different properties, being a strong oxidant.
Oxygen difluoride was first reported in 1929; it was obtained by the electrolysis of molten potassium fluoride and hydrofluoric acid containing small quantities of water.[2][3] The modern preparation entails the reaction of fluorine with a dilute aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide:
Its powerful oxidizing properties are suggested by the oxidation number of +2 for the oxygen atom, which is unusual. Above 200 °C, OF2 decomposes to oxygen and fluorine via a radical mechanism.
Oxygen difluoride reacts very slowly with water to form hydrofluoric acid:
OF2(aq) + H2O(aq) → 2HF(aq) + O2(g)
Popular culture
In Robert L. Forward's science fiction novel Camelot 30K, oxygen difluoride was used as a biochemical solvent by fictional life forms living in the solar system's Kuiper belt.
Safety
OF2 is a dangerous chemical, as is the case for any strongly oxidizing gas.
References
^ Yost, D. M. "Oxygen Fluoride" Inorganic Syntheses, 1939 volume, 1, pages 109-111.
^ Lebeau, P.; Damiens, A. "A New Method for the Preparation of the Fluorine Oxide”Compt. rend. 1929, volume 188, 1253-5.
^ Lebeau, P.; Damiens, A. "The Existence of an Oxygen Compound of Fluorine"Compt. rend. 1927, volume 185, pages 652-4.
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