KO2
Potassium superoxide · Potassium hyperoxide
Potassium superoxide is a chemical compound used primarily to generate oxygen and remove carbon dioxide in emergency breathing apparatuses.
About Potassium superoxide
Potassium superoxide is a semiconducting inorganic compound that plays a critical role in chemical oxygen generation. Its ability to react with moisture and carbon dioxide makes it an essential component for sustaining breathable atmospheres in closed environments.
As a thermodynamically stable material, it is highly valued for its reliability in specialized safety equipment. The compound is widely recognized for its high structural diversity, with numerous reported configurations that underscore its importance in chemical research and industrial applications.
Key Properties
Cross-validated computational properties for Potassium superoxide, aggregated across 5 databases.
Band GapEnergy needed to move an electron from the valence band to the conduction band. Lower or zero values tend to behave more metallic; larger gaps are more insulating or semiconducting.
Energy Above HullThermodynamic distance from the most stable set of competing phases. 0 eV/atom is on the convex hull; small positive values may still be experimentally accessible.
StabilityA plain-language summary of the best reported energy-above-hull result. It reflects whether the lowest-energy structure is on, near, or far from the stability hull.
StructuresCount of reported calculated crystal structures for this formula, including alternate polymorphs, source databases, and observed space groups.
Cross-Source DFT Agreement
How well independent DFT databases agree on the thermodynamics of KO2. Tight agreement means computed properties can be trusted without re-running calculations.
Agreement ScoreA normalized confidence score summarizing how closely independent DFT databases agree. Higher scores mean tighter cross-source agreement.
Hull SpreadDifference between the highest and lowest energy-above-hull values reported by comparable sources. Smaller spread means less thermodynamic disagreement.
Sources ComparedNumber and names of computational sources with comparable entries for this formula.
Space Group ConsensusWhether independent sources predict the same crystal symmetry for the lowest-energy structure.
Reported Structures
Lowest-energy structures reported for KO2, ranked by energy above hull.
| Space GroupSymmetry classification of the crystal arrangement. The number is the international space-group index. | Crystal SystemBroad lattice family, such as cubic, tetragonal, monoclinic, or triclinic, derived from unit-cell symmetry. | Band Gap (eV)Electronic gap calculated for this specific reported structure, measured in electronvolts. | E above hull (eV/atom)Thermodynamic distance from the convex hull for this structure, normalized per atom. Lower is generally more stable. | E/atom (eV)Computed total energy normalized per atom. Use energy above hull, not this value alone, when comparing stability. | Density (g/cm³)Mass per relaxed crystal volume, reported in grams per cubic centimeter. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I4/mmm (No. 139) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -1.018 | — |
| I4/mmm (No. 139) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -1.018 | — |
| I4/mmm (No. 139) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -1.018 | — |
| Immm (No. 71) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -4.673 | 2.35 |
| — | — | 0.00 | 0.0000 | -1.082 | — |
| I4/mmm (No. 139) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0002 | -1.018 | — |
| P21/c (No. 14) | monoclinic | 0.18 | 0.0028 | -4.670 | 2.34 |
| I4/mmm (No. 139) | tetragonal | 0.00 | 0.0172 | -4.656 | 2.40 |
| Imma (No. 74) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0358 | -0.982 | — |
| Imma (No. 74) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0361 | -0.982 | — |
| Imma (No. 74) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0361 | -0.982 | — |
| Imma (No. 74) | orthorhombic | 0.00 | 0.0362 | -0.982 | — |
Applications
Where Potassium superoxide is used.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Potassium superoxide, answered from cross-validated data.
What is KO2?
Potassium superoxide is a chemical compound used primarily to generate oxygen and remove carbon dioxide in emergency breathing apparatuses.
What is KO2 used for?
What is the band gap of KO2?
Is KO2 a metal, semiconductor, or insulator?
Is KO2 thermodynamically stable?
What is the crystal structure of KO2?
How many polymorphs of KO2 are known?
What elements does KO2 contain?
Where does the data for KO2 come from?
How It Compares
As a prominent superoxide, this compound serves as a benchmark for oxygen-releasing materials, functioning as a primary chemical agent in applications where high-efficiency carbon dioxide scrubbing and oxygen regeneration are required simultaneously.
Data sources & attribution
- jarvis — Data from JARVIS (jarvis.nist.gov), NIST. Cite: Choudhary et al., npj Comp. Mater. 6, 173 (2020). (LicenseRef-US-Gov-PD)
- materials_project — Data from the Materials Project (materialsproject.org). Cite: Jain et al., APL Materials 1, 011002 (2013). (CC-BY-4.0)
- oqmd — Data from the OQMD (oqmd.org). Cite: Saal et al., JOM 65, 1501 (2013); Kirklin et al., npj Comp. Mater. 1, 15010 (2015). (CC-BY-4.0)
Analyze KO2 in the Lattice Graph platform
Polymorph comparison, confidence scoring, supply-chain risk, and patent monitoring — across 85 source databases.
Explore the Platform →