Yttrium fluoride is an inorganic chemical compound

Chemical compound

A chemical compound is a pure chemical substance consisting of two or more different chemical elements that can be separated into simpler substances by chemical reactions. Chemical compounds have a unique and defined chemical structure; they consist of a fixed ratio of atoms that are held together...

 with the chemical formula Y

Yttrium

Yttrium is a chemical element with symbol Y and atomic number 39. It is a silvery-metallic transition metal chemically similar to the lanthanides and it has often been classified as a "rare earth element". Yttrium is almost always found combined with the lanthanides in rare earth minerals and is...

F₃

Fluorine

Fluorine is the chemical element with atomic number 9, represented by the symbol F. It is the lightest element of the halogen column of the periodic table and has a single stable isotope, fluorine-19. At standard pressure and temperature, fluorine is a pale yellow gas composed of diatomic...

. It is not known naturally in 'pure' form. The fluoride minerals containing essential yttrium include tveitite-(Y) (Y,Na)₆Ca₆Ca₆F₄₂ and gagarinite-(Y) NaCaY(F,Cl)₆. Sometimes mineral fluorite

Fluorite

Fluorite is a halide mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It is an isometric mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon...

 contains admixtures of yttrium.

Synthesis

YF₃ can be produced by reacting fluorine with yttria or yttrium hydroxide with hydrofluoric acid

Hydrofluoric acid

Hydrofluoric acid is a solution of hydrogen fluoride in water. It is a valued source of fluorine and is the precursor to numerous pharmaceuticals such as fluoxetine and diverse materials such as PTFE ....

.

Y(OH)₃ + 3HF → YF₃ + 3H₂O

Uses

Yttrium(III) fluoride can be used for the production of metallic yttrium, thin films, glasses and ceramics.