Ammonium hydrosulfide

Ammonium hydrosulfide

Names
IUPAC name ammonium hydrosulfide
Other names ammonium bisulfide ammonium hydrogen sulfide
Identifiers
CAS Number	12124-99-1
ChemSpider	23805
Jmol interactive 3D	Image
RTECS number	BS4900000
InChI InChI=1S/H3N.H2S/h1H3;1H2 Key: HIVLDXAAFGCOFU-UHFFFAOYSA-N InChI=1/H3N.H2S/h1H3;1H2 Key: HIVLDXAAFGCOFU-UHFFFAOYAU
SMILES [SH-].[NH4+]
Properties
Chemical formula	H5NS
Molar mass	51.111 g/mol
Appearance	Yellow-orange fuming liquid.
Density	1.17 g/cm^3[1]
Boiling point	56.6 °C (133.9 °F; 329.8 K)
Solubility in water	Miscible
Solubility	soluble in alcohol, liquid ammonia, liquid hydrogen sulfide; insoluble in benzene, hexane and ether
Refractive index (nD)	1.74
Hazards
Main hazards	Toxic
R-phrases	R11, R23, R24, R25.
NFPA 704	3 3
Lethal dose or concentration (LD, LC):
LD50 (Median dose)	168 mg/kg (rat, oral)[2]
Related compounds
Other anions	Ammonium sulfate
Other cations	Sodium hydrosulfide
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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Infobox references

Ammonium hydrosulfide is the chemical compound with the formula (NH₄)SH. It is the salt derived from the ammonium cation and the hydrosulfide anion. The salt exists as colourless, water-soluble, micaceous crystals. On Earth the compound is encountered mainly as a solution, not as the solid, but NH₄SH ice is believed to be a substantial component of the cloud decks of the gas-giant planets Jupiter and Saturn, with sulfur produced by its photolysis responsible for the color of some of those planets' clouds. It can be generated by mixing hydrogen sulfide and ammonia.

Preparation

Solutions of ammonium hydrosulfide can be prepared by passing hydrogen sulfide gas through concentrated ammonia solution.^[3] According to a detailed 1895 report, hydrogen sulfide reacts with concentrated aqueous ammonia solution at room temperature to give (NH₄)₂S·2NH₄HS. When this species is cooled to 0 °C and treated with additional hydrogen sulfide, one obtains (NH₄)₂S·12NH₄HS.^[4] An ice-cold solution of this substance kept at 0 °C and having hydrogen sulfide continually passed through it gives the hydrosulfide.

The common "stink bomb" consists of an aqueous solution of ammonium sulfide. The mixture easily converts to ammonia and hydrogen sulfide gases. This conversion illustrates the ease of the following equilibrium:

(NH₄)SH$\overrightarrow{\leftarrow}$ NH₃ + H₂S

Both ammonia and hydrogen sulfide have a powerfully unpleasant smell.

References

1. Pradyot Patnaik. Handbook of Inorganic Chemicals. McGraw-Hill, 2002, ISBN 0-07-049439-8
2. Record of ammonium hydrosulfide in the GESTIS Substance Database of the IFA, accessed on October 22, 2010
3. Goodman, J. T.; Rauchfuss, T. B., (2002). "Tetraethylammonium-tetrathioperrhenate [Et₄N][ReS₄]". Inorganic Syntheses 33: 107–110. doi:10.1002/0471224502.ch2.
4. W. P. Bloxam (1895). "The Sulphides and Polysulphides of Ammonium". J. Chem. Soc., Trans. 67: 283. doi:10.1039/CT8956700277.