Synthesis of the dilithium salt of cyanamide in liquid lithium; X-ray crystal structure of Li2NCN
Abstract
Dilithium acetylide reacts with a solution of lithium nitride in liquid lithium at 530 °C to form the dilithium salt of cyanamide, Li2NCN; subsequent evaporation of the liquid metal solvent leaves colourless single crystals of the salt which X-ray diffraction shows is composed of centrosymmetric NCN2– ions and Li+ ions surrounded by a distorted tetrahedron of nitrogen atoms.