SOLUBILITIES OF SALTS IN METALS

Abstract

A series of experiments to determine the solubilities of metal chlorides in their metals was carried out, using a visual technique. The systems studied were: Bi, Hg, Pb, Cd, Zn, Sn, In, Ag, and Cu, with their chlorides. The results show that BiCl3 and Hg2Cl2 are most soluble, the former being completely miscible with Bi at 778° C., while the latter is soluble to the extent of 7 mole per cent, at 600°C. PbCl2 is slightly soluble (1 mole per cent at 1000°C.), while the remaining salts are considered insoluble in their metals. There appears to be no single criterion for predicting the solubility of salts in their metals. Experiment's were also carried out to see if nonspecificity of solubility exist's at high temperatures, that is, to determine if metals dissolve salts other than their own halides. It was found that solubility does occur. It was also found that the less stable the salt, the greater is the solubility of the salt in a given metal, until the solubility approaches that of the salt of the metal. Thermodynamic calculations indicate that the solubility of a foreign salt in a metal can be explained in terms of oxidation‐reduction reactions to form the halide of the metal, which in turn dissolves in the metal. These calculations suggest that BiCl3 dissolves in bismuth metal as BiCl. Copyright © 1960, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved