Chloride helps to maintain the body's water and acid-base balance and electrolyte content. It also plays a role in digestion: hydrochloric acid (HCl) is an important component of gastric juice.

Chlorides are compounds with the chemical element chlorine. This can occur in combination with metals, semi-metals or non-metals. Metal chlorides such as sodium chloride and cobalt(II) chloride are salts of hydrochloric acid, better known as hydrochloric acid (chemical formula: HCl). Such a chloride contains negatively charged chlorine(-I) ions Cl- (usually called chloride ions) in its ionic lattice. Non-metallic chlorides such as hydrogen chloride, sulphur chlorides, carbon tetrachloride (tetrachloromethane) and chlorine dioxide are molecular compounds that are much more volatile than salt-like chlorides. In organic chemistry, chlorinated hydrocarbons are regarded and named as derivatives of various hydrocarbon compounds. Methane, for example, in which a hydrogen atom has been exchanged (substituted) for a chlorine atom, is referred to as chloromethane or methyl chloride. Here, however, the chlorine is not present as a chloride ion as in the ionic compounds mentioned above, but is covalently bonded to the carbon atom. In the

Chlorides occur naturally in large deposits, such as sodium chloride, which is rock salt or halite. Many other chlorides are contained in potassium chloride, such as sylvite and carnallite, kainite and sylvinite. Magnesium chloride is also abundant in mischite.

Most of the world's chlorides are dissolved in seawater and in large underground salt deposits formed by the evaporation of water from primeval oceans.

How can chloride be detected using wet chemistry?

The first step is to prepare a solution. The sodium hydroxide extract is the best solution for this, as it separates many interfering cations from the chloride in its filtrate. The halide detection can then be carried out. Chlorides are precipitated with silver nitrate solution as white, water-insoluble silver chloride.

The quantitative detection of chlorides can be carried out using titration methods for halides.

Chlorides are a type of salt that can occur in a variety of crystal structures and have very high melting and boiling points. They are highly soluble in water, which is why silver chloride - as a non-water-soluble chloride - is of particular importance in laboratory chemistry. As a melt or in solution, they conduct electricity. Chlorides dissolve in protic and polar solvents.

Inorganic chlorides

Chlorides are only formed in the redox reaction of metals with elemental chlorine or with hydrochloric acid if they are below hydrogen in the voltage series, as hydrochloric acid does not have an oxidizing effect. However, they are also formed in the reaction of hydroxides, metal oxides, carbonates, hydrogen carbonates and generally salts of weaker acids with hydrochloric acid.

There are two methods for producing inorganic chlorides:

1. In aqueous solution using HCl gas
2. Reaction between anhydrous metals and Cl2

organic chlorides

Chlorides are inorganic compounds that contain the element chlorine. Chlorides can be obtained by substitution and addition reactions on hydrocarbons as well as on carboxylic acids and their derivatives.

There are organic chlorides in which the chlorine is present as a chloride ion, e.g. in the hydrochlorides and N-acyliminium chlorides.

In carboxylic acid chlorides, a chlorine atom is bonded to an acyl radical via a strongly polarized covalent bond. In the chloroalkanes - traditionally referred to as alkyl chlorides - the respective chlorine atom is bonded to a carbon atom via a less polarized covalent bond.