Arsenic pentasulfide is an inorganic compound

Inorganic compound

Inorganic compounds have traditionally been considered to be of inanimate, non-biological origin. In contrast, organic compounds have an explicit biological origin. However, over the past century, the classification of inorganic vs organic compounds has become less important to scientists,...

 contains arsenic and sulfur with the formula. The identity of this reddish solid remains uncertain. Solids of the approximate formula As₂

Arsenic

Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As, atomic number 33 and relative atomic mass 74.92. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in conjunction with sulfur and metals, and also as a pure elemental crystal. It was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250.Arsenic is a metalloid...

S₅

Sulfide

A sulfide is an anion of sulfur in its lowest oxidation state of 2-. Sulfide is also a slightly archaic term for thioethers, a common type of organosulfur compound that are well known for their bad odors.- Properties :...

 have been used as pigment

Pigment

A pigment is a material that changes the color of reflected or transmitted light as the result of wavelength-selective absorption. This physical process differs from fluorescence, phosphorescence, and other forms of luminescence, in which a material emits light.Many materials selectively absorb...

s and chemical intermediates but are generally only of interest in academic laboratories.

Preparation

Arsenic pentasulfide is prepared by precipitation from an acidic solution of soluble As(V) salts by treatment with hydrogen sulfide

Hydrogen sulfide

Hydrogen sulfide is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless, very poisonous, flammable gas with the characteristic foul odor of expired eggs perceptible at concentrations as low as 0.00047 parts per million...

. It may be also prepared by heating a mixture of arsenic and sulfur, extracting the fused mass with an ammonia

Ammonia

Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...

 solution and reprecipitating arsenic pentasulfide at low temperature by addition of hydrochloric acid

Hydrochloric acid

Hydrochloric acid is a solution of hydrogen chloride in water, that is a highly corrosive, strong mineral acid with many industrial uses. It is found naturally in gastric acid....

.

Phosphorus pentasulfide

Phosphorus pentasulfide

Phosphorus pentasulfide is the inorganic compound with the formula P4S10. This yellow solid is the one of two phosphorus sulfides of commercial value...

 with the formula P₄S₁₀, is a molecular compound featuring tetrahedral phosphorus(V) centres. Trends in arsenic redox potentials suggest that As₂S₅ adopts a similar structure, a plausible alternative being an arsenic polysulfide.

Reactions

Arsenic pentasulfide hydrolyzes in boiling water, giving arsenous acid

Arsenous acid

Arsenous acid, also known as arsenious acid, is the inorganic compound with the formula H3AsO3. It is known to occur in aqueous solutions, but it has not been isolated as a pure material, although this fact does not detract from the significance of As3.-Properties:As3 is a pyramidal molecule...

 and sulfur

Sulfur

Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element with atomic number 16. In the periodic table it is represented by the symbol S. It is an abundant, multivalent non-metal. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with chemical formula S8. Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow...

:

As₂S₅ + 6 H₂O → 2 H₃AsO₃ + 2 S + 3 H₂S

It oxidizes in air at elevated temperatures producing arsenic oxides, the products and yields of which are variable. In alkali metal sulfide solutions arsenic pentasulfide forms a thioarsenate anion, [AsS₄]^3–, which contain As(III) centres.