What Is The Chemical Formula For Aluminium Sulfide?
The chemical formula for aluminium sulfide is Al2S3.
This means that each molecule of aluminium sulfide contains two atoms of aluminium (symbolized by "Al") and three atoms of sulfur (symbolized by "S"). The subscript numbers indicate the number of each type of atom in the molecule.
To write the formula, we use the rules of ionic bonding, where one element loses electrons to form a positively charged ion (cation) and another element gains those electrons to form a negatively charged ion (anion). In the case of aluminium sulfide, aluminum has a charge of +3 and sulfur has a charge of -2. To balance these charges, we need two aluminum ions (2x+3=+6) and three sulfur ions (3x-2=-6), giving us the overall formula Al2S3.
Aluminum sulfide is typically prepared by reacting aluminum with sulfur or hydrogen sulfide gas. It is a pale yellow solid that is insoluble in water but soluble in acidic solutions. It is also known as alumina tri-sulfide or dialuminium trisulfide. Aluminium sulfide is used in a variety of industrial applications, such as in the production of rubber and ceramics, and as a reducing agent in chemical reactions.