Uranium(III) iodide

Uranium triiodide is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula UI3.  It is a black solid that is soluble in water.

Production
Uranium triiodide can be obtained from the direct reaction of its constituent elements:

2 U + 3 I2 → 2 UI3

When the reaction is conducted in tetrahydrofuran (thf), the product is the blue UI3(thf)4.

Properties
It crystallizes in the orthorhombic crystal system (plutonium tribromide-type) in the space group Ccmm with the lattice parameters a = 432.8 pm, b = 1401.1 pm, and c = 1000.5 pm and four formula units per unit cell. 

Uranium triiodide is Lewis acidic.

References

Category:Uranium(III) compounds
Category:Iodides
Category:Metal halides