27 Facts About Chlorine

1.

Chlorine is a chemical element with the symbol Cl and atomic number 17.

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2.

Chlorine played an important role in the experiments conducted by medieval alchemists, which commonly involved the heating of chloride salts like ammonium chloride and sodium chloride, producing various chemical substances containing chlorine such as hydrogen chloride, mercur chloride, and hydrochloric acid (in the form of ).

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3.

Chlorine is used in the manufacture of a wide range of consumer products, about two-thirds of them organic chemicals such as polyvinyl chloride, many intermediates for the production of plastics, and other end products which do not contain the element.

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4.

Chlorine called it "dephlogisticated muriatic acid air" since it is a gas and it came from hydrochloric acid.

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5.

Chlorine gas was first used by French chemist Claude Berthollet to bleach textiles in 1785.

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6.

Chlorine gas was first used as a weapon on April 22, 1915, at Ypres by the German Army.

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7.

Chlorine is the second halogen, being a nonmetal in group 17 of the periodic table.

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8.

Chlorine has the electron configuration [Ne]3s3p, with the seven electrons in the third and outermost shell acting as its valence electrons.

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9.

Chlorine is intermediate in reactivity between fluorine and bromine, and is one of the most reactive elements.

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10.

Chlorine is a weaker oxidising agent than fluorine but a stronger one than bromine or iodine.

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11.

Chlorine tends to react with compounds including M–M, M–H, or M–C bonds to form M–Cl bonds.

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12.

Chlorine monofluoride is extremely thermally stable, and is sold commercially in 500-gram steel lecture bottles.

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13.

Chlorine trifluoride is a volatile colourless molecular liquid which melts at -76.

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14.

Chlorine oxides are well-studied in spite of their instability.

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15.

Chlorine dioxide was the first chlorine oxide to be discovered in 1811 by Humphry Davy.

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16.

Chlorine adds to the multiple bonds on alkenes and alkynes as well, giving di- or tetra-chloro compounds.

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17.

Chlorine is too reactive to occur as the free element in nature but is very abundant in the form of its chloride salts.

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18.

Commercial processes, such as the Mitsui MT-Chlorine Process, have switched to chromium and ruthenium-based catalysts.

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19.

Chlorine is presently an important chemical for water purification, in disinfectants, and in bleach.

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20.

Chlorine is usually used to kill bacteria and other microbes in drinking water supplies and public swimming pools.

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21.

Chlorine gas, known as bertholite, was first used as a weapon in World War I by Germany on April 22, 1915, in the Second Battle of Ypres.

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22.

Chlorine reacts with water in the mucosa of the lungs to form hydrochloric acid, destructive to living tissue and potentially lethal.

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23.

Chlorine gas was used during the Iraq War in Anbar Province in 2007, with insurgents packing truck bombs with mortar shells and chlorine tanks.

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24.

Chlorine is needed for the production of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and in cellular pump functions.

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25.

Chlorine is a toxic gas that attacks the respiratory system, eyes, and skin.

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26.

Chlorine is detectable with measuring devices in concentrations as low as 0.

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27.

Chlorine is widely used for purifying water, especially potable water supplies and water used in swimming pools.

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