Qualitative Analysis of Antimony, Bismuth and Arsenic in Mixtures

Cations of antimony, bismuth and arsenic react with potassium iodide and ether in presence of hydrochloric acid. The liquid reaction products can be hydrolysed and the three metal ions will accumulate in the third liquid phase which will form from the originally two phase system (ether-water). The next step is to determine whether the obtained product consists of an individual liquid compound only or it is a binary or ternary mixture of the liquid compounds of the three cations in question

Reactions of Cations of the II Analytical Group with Iodide-ionand Ether in Presence of Hydrochloric Acid. Ill. Reaction of Arsenic

Besides antimony and bismuth, arsenic (Ill) ion also gives with iodide ion and ether in presence of hydrochloric acid a liquid reaction product, yet a greater concentration of iodide and of hydrochloric acid is needed than for the reaction of antimony and of bismuth respectively. The product is likely to be an etherate of a hydrate of the arsenious hydroiodic acid. If a drop of the product is cautiously introduced into water, hydrolysis occurs at the interface of the two liquid phases (water-reaction product), and the surface of the droplet becomes covered by a white firm film of arsenic trioxide. The reaction can serve as an identification test for arsenic, being specific and unusual in type