Characteristic

 

Ammonium chloride is an inorganic compound with the formula NH₄Cl and a white crystalline salt that is highly soluble in water. Solutions of ammonium chloride are mildly acidic. Sal ammoniac is a name of the natural, mineralogical form of ammonium chloride. The mineral is commonly formed on burning coal dumps from condensation of coal-derived gases.

Chemical formula: NH₄Cl

Molar mass: 53.49 g/mol

Appearance: White solid, hygroscopic

Odor: Odorless

Density: 1.519 g/cm³

Sublimation conditions: Decomposes at 337.6 °C at 1 atm(ΔdecompHo = 176.1kJ/mol)

Solubility in water:244 g/L (−15 °C); 294 g/L (0 °C): 383.0 g/L (25 °C); 454.4 g/L(40 °C); 740.8 g/L (100 °C)

Solubility product (Ksp): 30.9 (395 g/L)

Solubility: Soluble in liquid ammonia, hydrazine,Slightly soluble in acetone, Insoluble in diethyl ether, ethyl acetate

Solubility in methanol: 32 g/kg (17 °C); 33.5 g/kg (19 °C); 35.4 g/kg (25 °C)

Solubility in ethanol: 6 g/L (19 °C)

Solubility in glycerol: 97 g/kg

Solubility in sulfur dioxide: 0.09 g/kg (0 °C); 0.031 g/kg (25 °C)

Solubility in acetic acid: 0.67 g/kg (16.6 °C)

Vapor pressure: 133.3 Pa (160.4 °C); 6.5 kPa (250 °C); 33.5 kPa (300 °C)

Acidity (pKa): 9.24

Magnetic susceptibility (χ): -36.7•10⁻⁶ cm³/mol

Refractive index (nD): 1.642 (20 °C)

 

Application

Ammonium Chloride is commonly used as a buffer solution. It is used in the manufacture of fireworks, safety explosives and smokes. It is used to control pH levels in chemicals, to produce sodium carbonate, as a fertilizer, in electronics and in metallurgy. Also used as a flux for cleaning, as a flavoring agent, as an expectorant in cough medicine and as a systemic acidifying agent. It is widely used as an electrolyte in zinc-carbon batteries. It has application in leather industries for dyeing, tanning, textile printing and to luster cotton.