In chemistry,
boranes comprise a large group of compounds with the generic formula of
BxH
y. These compounds do not occur in nature. Many of the boranes readily oxidise on contact with air, some violently. The class is named after the parent chemical called "
borane" itself, chemical formula BH
3. This compound is only known to exist as a transient intermediate since it
dimerises to form
diborane, B
2H
6. The larger boranes all consist of
boron clusters that are
polyhedral. In addition to the charge-neutral boranes, a large number of anionic boron hydrides are known. The most important boranes are
diborane B
2H
6 and two of its pyrolysis products,
pentaborane B
5H
9 and
decaborane B
10H
14. The development of the chemistry of boron hydrides led to new experimental techniques and theoretical concepts. Boron hydrides have been studied as potential fuels, for rockets and for automotive uses, but the only commercial applications involve derivatives of borane.