Lesson plan
Hexazine
Hexazine (also known as hexaazabenzene) is a hypothetical allotrope of nitrogen composed of 6 nitrogen atoms arranged in a ring-like structure analogous to that of benzene. As a neutrally charged species, hexazine would be the final member of the azabenzene (azine) series, in which all of the methine groups of the benzene molecule have been replaced with nitrogen atoms. The two last members of this series, hexazine and pentazine, have not been observed, although all other members of the azine series have (such as pyridine, pyrimidine, pyridazine, pyrazine, triazines, and tetrazines). While a neutrally charged hexazine species has not yet been synthesized, two negatively charged variants, [N 6 ] 2- and [N 6 ] 4- , have been produced in potassium-nitrogen compounds under very high pressures (> 40 GPa) and temperatures (> 2000 K). In particular, [N 6 ] 4- is aromatic, respecting Hückel's rule, while [N 6 ] 2- is anti-aromatic. The synthesis of the structural isomer, the linear hexanitrogen, C 2h -N 6 , was published in 2025.
Article summary
Hexazine (also known as hexaazabenzene) is a hypothetical allotrope of nitrogen composed of 6 nitrogen atoms arranged in a ring-like structure analogous to that of benzene. As a neutrally charged species, hexazine would be the final member of the azabenzene (azine) series, in which all of the methine groups of the benzene molecule have been replaced with nitrogen atoms. The two last members of this series, hexazine and pentazine, have not been observed, although all other members of the azine series have (such as pyridine, pyrimidine, pyridazine, pyrazine, triazines, and tetrazines). While a neutrally charged hexazine species has not yet been synthesized, two negatively charged variants, [N 6 ] 2- and [N 6 ] 4- , have been produced in potassium-nitrogen compounds under very high pressures (> 40 GPa) and temperatures (> 2000 K). In particular, [N 6 ] 4- is aromatic, respecting Hückel's rule, while [N 6 ] 2- is anti-aromatic. The synthesis of the structural isomer, the linear hexanitrogen, C 2h -N 6 , was published in 2025.
Key claims
- publication date: 2025 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- The record states that the publication date is "2025". What evidence would count against this claim?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1377246893
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.