Experimental study of fluorite solubility in acidic solutions as a method for boron fluoride complexes studying

Abstract

Fluorite solubility in HCl and HF solutions with varied concentrations of boric acid was studied at 81, 155, and 208°C and saturated vapor pressure. Our experimental results demonstrate that fluorite solubility increases with increasing B(OH)₃ concentration, and this was interpreted as the formation of the BF3OH–complex (Ryss, 1956). The experimental data were used to determine, using the OptimA software, the free energies of formation of HF°(aq) and, which were then used to calculate the constants of the reactions HF = H⁺ + F^– (1) and B(OH)₃(aq) + 2H⁺ + 3 F^– (2). The pK₁ values are 3.71 ± 0.013, 4.28 ± 0.015, and 4.89 ± 0.017 and pK₂ 13.60 ± 0.02, 13.99 ± 0.02, and 14.95 ± 0.03 at saturated vapor pressure and 81, 155, and 208°C, respectively.