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Exercise · Q37

Q.Describe the preparation and structure of XeF6\text{XeF}_6.

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Xenon hexafluoride is prepared from a xenon-rich mixture of xenon and fluorine (an overall ratio of about 1:20) under still more forcing conditions than XeF4\text{XeF}_4 (about 573 K and a high pressure of 60-70 bar): Xe+3F2→60-70 bar573 KXeF6\text{Xe} + 3\text{F}_2 \xrightarrow[60\text{-}70\text{ bar}]{573\text{ K}} \text{XeF}_6 Structurally, XeF6\text{XeF}_6 is distorted octahedral. Xenon is sp3d3sp^3d^3 hybridised, with seven electron domains around it in total -- six bonding pairs (to the six fluorine atoms) plus one lone pair -- which cannot be accommodated symmetrically in any simple, regular polyhedron. The single lone pair instead sits over one triangular face of what would otherwise be a perfect octahedron, pushing the six actual Xe-F bonds measurably away from their ideal 90∘90^\circ octahedral positions and giving the molecule its ch …

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