Carbon Monosulphide, CS

Carbon Monosulphide, CS is described as resulting on passing carbon disulphide vapour over spongy platinum, pumice stone or red-hot charcoal. It is also formed by the action of the silent electric discharge on carbon disulphide or on a mixture of the latter with either hydrogen or carbon monoxide, thus:

CS₂ + H₂ = CS + H₂S,
CS₂ + CO = CS + COS.

Thiocarbonyl chloride reacts rapidly with nickel carbonyl at the ordinary temperature according to the equation:

xSCl₂ + xNi(CO)₄ = xNiCl₂ + 4xCO + (CS)_x.

After the nickel chloride has been extracted from the solid product by water, a brown substance remains which has the empirical formula CS, but which, on account of its being a non-volatile solid, must be a polymer, (CS)_x. According to Dewar and Jones, carbon monosulphide is an endothermic gas which is condensable by liquid air and which rapidly polymerises to (CS)_x, at atmospheric temperature.