Ask A Scientist

Chemistry Archive

Ion colors

Question:  What distinguishes the three colors of the ions Cl-, Br-, and I-?
We are doing qualitative Analysis in school and I was wondering if there was
a way to tell the ions apart because of their color.
 jim day

Answer:
If you made a Ag salt of these halides AgCl would be white, AgBr would
be an off-white to cream color and AgI would be a yellow.  You can test
the solubility of each precipitate in NH3 also.  AgCl is soluble, AgBr is
moderately soluble and AgI is insoluble.
-Joe Schultz

Back to Chemistry	Ask A Scientist Index
NEWTON Homepage	Ask A Question

NEWTON is an electronic community for Science, Math, and Computer Science K-12 Educators.
Argonne National Laboratory, Division of Educational Programs, Harold Myron, Ph.D., Division Director.