Boranes

any chemical compound composed of boron and hydrogen atoms only

Diborane(6), commonly known as diborane, is the inorganic compound with the formula . It is a highly toxic, colorless, and pyrophoric gas with a repulsively sweet odor. Given its simple formula, diborane is a fundamental boron compound. It has attracted wide attention for its unique electronic structure. Several of its derivatives are useful reagents.

Decaborane, also called decaborane(14), is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula B10H14. It is classified as a borane and more specifically a boron hydride cluster. This white crystalline compound is one of the principal boron hydride clusters, both as a reference structure and as a precursor to other boron hydrides. It is toxic and volatile, giving off a foul odor, like that of burnt rubber or chocolate.

Pentaborane(9) is an inorganic compound with the formula . It is one of the most common boron hydride clusters, although it is a highly reactive compound. Because of its high reactivity with oxygen, it was once evaluated as rocket or jet fuel. Like many of the smaller boron hydrides, pentaborane is colourless, diamagnetic, and volatile. It is related to pentaborane(11) ().

chemical compound

Borane is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . Because it tends to dimerize or form adducts, borane is very rarely observed. It normally dimerizes to diborane in the absence of other chemicals. It can be observed directly as a continuously produced, transitory, product in a flow system or from the reaction of laser ablated atomic boron with hydrogen. Borane is the simplest group 13 hydride.

Tetraborane (systematically named '''arachno-tetraborane(10)''') was the first boron hydride compound to be discovered. It was classified by Alfred Stock and Carl Massenez in 1912 and was first isolated by Stock. It has a relatively low boiling point at 18 °C and is a gas at room temperature. Tetraborane gas is foul smelling and toxic.

Catecholborane (abbreviated HBcat) is an organoboron compound that is useful in organic synthesis. This colourless liquid is a derivative of catechol and a borane, having the formula C6H4O2BH.

Diborane(4) is a transient inorganic compound with the chemical formula . Stable derivatives are known.

Hexaborane, also called hexaborane(10) to distinguish it from hexaborane(12) (B6H12), is a boron hydride cluster with the formula B6H10. It is a colorless liquid that is unstable in air.

Pentaborane(11) is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula B5H11. It is an obscure boron hydride cluster, especially relative to the heavily studied pentaborane(9) (B5H9). With two more hydrogen atoms than nido-pentaborane(9), pentaborane(11) is classified as an arachno- cluster.

Hexaborane(12) is an inorganic compound with the formula B6H12. It is an obscure member of the boranes. It is a colorless liquid that, like some other boron hydride clusters, is readily hydrolyzed and flammable.

Octadecaborane is an inorganic compound, a boron hydride cluster with chemical formula B18H22. It is a colorless flammable solid, like many higher boron hydrides. Although the compound has no practical applications, its structure is of theoretical and pedagogical interest.

chemical compound

The dodecaborate(12) anion, [B12H12]2−, is a boron hydride cluster anion. It forms a variety of colorless salts with alkali metal and quaternary ammonium cations. The cluster has a distinctive icosahedral structure with 12 boron atoms at the vertices, each boron atom is attached to a hydrogen atom. Its symmetry is classified by the molecular point group Ih.

chemical compound