There are multiple high oxidation state metal fluorides that can be synthesized and isolated in relatively large quantities as pure substances that have a higher electron affinity than Fluorine. The most oxidizing of these is Platinum hexafluoride whose electron affinity approaches 8 electron volts. To give you an idea of how insane that is, Fluorine’s electron affinity is slightly higher than 3 electron volts. i.e adding an electron to PtF6 liberates almost 3 times the energy that adding an electron to Fluorine does. It is such a strong oxidizer that it can tear an electron off Oxygen molecules to form PtF6 * O2. It was this observation that lead to the experiments that demonstrated the first noble gas compounds. PtF6 reacts with Xenon to form a similar salt. This was the first time noble gases were proven not to be universally inert.
Mixtures of Fluorine and lewis acids like Boron trifluoride, Antimony pentafluoride and the like can functionally act as far stromger oxidizing agents than Fluorine itself. These form superhalogen salts when they react with things or just destroy whatever it is that was unfortunate enough to be mixed with them.
PtF6 is not the molecule with the highest electron affinity that can exist. It is just the current record holder for the highest electron affinity of something we have been able to isolate as a pure substance. Hyperhalogens, which are essentially russian nesting dolls of oxidizing agents, can approach electron affinities of 10 electron volts. And while we cannot isolate these in their pure state, their extreme affinity for electrons can be used to stabilize otherwise unobtainable positively charged ions as salts.
Molecules like napthalene that have had all of their Hydrogens replaced with nitrile groups (CN) can have electron affinities around 5 electron volts or higher.
Then there are molecules like diatomic Beryllium monoxide that are too reactive to isolate as bulk materials that are capable of reacting with Helium and Neon which are the least reactive elements. A combination of Copper Fluoride and Sodium Fluoride in the gas phase are similarly capable of reacting with pretty much any molecule or atom we throw at them.
You know what is scary? FOOF, ClF3 and fluorine arent the most reactive or horrifying of the oxidizers. There’s much worse.
Go on. Tell me more, and then send it to Derek Lowe.
There are multiple high oxidation state metal fluorides that can be synthesized and isolated in relatively large quantities as pure substances that have a higher electron affinity than Fluorine. The most oxidizing of these is Platinum hexafluoride whose electron affinity approaches 8 electron volts. To give you an idea of how insane that is, Fluorine’s electron affinity is slightly higher than 3 electron volts. i.e adding an electron to PtF6 liberates almost 3 times the energy that adding an electron to Fluorine does. It is such a strong oxidizer that it can tear an electron off Oxygen molecules to form PtF6 * O2. It was this observation that lead to the experiments that demonstrated the first noble gas compounds. PtF6 reacts with Xenon to form a similar salt. This was the first time noble gases were proven not to be universally inert.
Mixtures of Fluorine and lewis acids like Boron trifluoride, Antimony pentafluoride and the like can functionally act as far stromger oxidizing agents than Fluorine itself. These form superhalogen salts when they react with things or just destroy whatever it is that was unfortunate enough to be mixed with them.
PtF6 is not the molecule with the highest electron affinity that can exist. It is just the current record holder for the highest electron affinity of something we have been able to isolate as a pure substance. Hyperhalogens, which are essentially russian nesting dolls of oxidizing agents, can approach electron affinities of 10 electron volts. And while we cannot isolate these in their pure state, their extreme affinity for electrons can be used to stabilize otherwise unobtainable positively charged ions as salts.
Molecules like napthalene that have had all of their Hydrogens replaced with nitrile groups (CN) can have electron affinities around 5 electron volts or higher.
Then there are molecules like diatomic Beryllium monoxide that are too reactive to isolate as bulk materials that are capable of reacting with Helium and Neon which are the least reactive elements. A combination of Copper Fluoride and Sodium Fluoride in the gas phase are similarly capable of reacting with pretty much any molecule or atom we throw at them.
It pulls electrons off of noble gases maybe lead with that next time…