'''Hypohalites''' are chemical compounds containing the hypohalite ion, with the general formula XO⁻, where X is a halogen element from Group 17 of the periodic table (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine). Hypohalites are the conjugate bases of hypohalous acids (HOX) and represent the lowest oxidation state (+1) of halogens in their oxoanions. The pseudohalogen analogues are '''hypopseudohalites'''. [[File:Hypochlorite-3D-vdW.png|thumb|right|Hypochlorite (ClO<sup>−</sup>)]]
Hypohalites, especially hypochlorite and hypobromite, are commonly used as disinfectants. In human bodies, the animal heme-dependent peroxidases of the immune system produce hypohalites (OCl⁻, OBr⁻, OI⁻) and hypothiocyanite as a weapon.<ref name="pmid17082494">{{cite journal |vauthors=Moskwa P, Lorentzen D, Excoffon KJ, Zabner J, McCray PB, Nauseef WM, Dupuy C, Bánfi B | title = A Novel Host Defense System of Airways Is Defective in Cystic Fibrosis | journal = Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. | volume = 175 | issue = 2 | pages = 174��83 |date=January 2007 | pmid = 17082494 | pmc = 2720149 | doi = 10.1164/rccm.200607-1029OC }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.jbc.org/cgi/content/abstract/264/10/5660 |title=Eosinophils preferentially use bromide to generate halogenating agents |first1=A N |last1=Mayeno |first2=A J |last2=Curran |first3=R L |last3=Roberts |first4=C S |last4=Foote |volume=264 |issue=10 |date=5 April 1989 |journal=Journal of Biological Chemistry |pages=5660–8 |doi=10.1016/S0021-9258(18)83599-2 |pmid=2538427 |doi-access=free |access-date=25 October 2009 |archive-date=26 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090526042824/http://www.jbc.org/cgi/content/abstract/264/10/5660 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Hypohalites are also encountered in organic chemistry, often as acyl hypohalites (see the Hunsdiecker reaction). Sodium hypohalite is used in the haloform reaction as a test for methyl ketones.<ref>''Experimental Organic Chemistry: A Miniscale and Microscale Approach'' by John Gilbert Stephen Martin p. 863</ref> In human bodies, the generate hypohalites and hypopseudohalites are generated by ]
== Structure == The hypohalite ion consists of a halogen atom covalently bonded to an oxygen atom, carrying an overall negative charge. The halogen is in the +1 oxidation state, and the oxygen is in the usual −2 state. The general formula is:
<chem display="inline">XO-</chem>
* <chem>X</chem> is the halogen atom, and * <chem>O</chem> is the oxygen atom
The Cl-O bond length in crystalline sodium hypochlorite pentahydrate, NaOCl·5H<sub>2</sub>O, is 1.686 Å, while in sodium hypobromite pentahydrate, NaOBr·5H<sub>2</sub>O, the Br–O bond length is 8% longer at 1.820 Å.<ref name="Friscic">{{ cite journal | title = After 200 Years: The Structure of Bleach and Characterization of Hypohalite Ions by Single-Crystal X-Ray Diffraction | first1 = Filip | last1 = Topić | first2 = Joseph M. |last2 = Marrett | first3 = Tristan H. | last3 = Borchers | first4 = Hatem M. | last4 = Titi | first5 = Christopher J. | last5 = Barrett | first6 = Tomislav | last6 = Friščić | journal = Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. | volume = 60 | issue = 46 | year = 2021 | pages = 24400–24405 | doi = 10.1002/anie.202108843 | pmid = 34293249 | s2cid = 236199263 }}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
Category:Hypohalites
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