Structure determination of 3H-benzimidazol-1-ium chloride monohydrate

The title compound, C7H7N2+·Cl−·H2O, crystallizes in the ortho­rhom­bic space group Pnma. The organic mol­ecule lies on a crystallographic mirror plane, resulting in an asymmetric unit comprising one-half of a benzimidazolium cation. The crystal packing features N—H⋯Cl, O—H⋯O, and O—H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds, which connect the ionic and neutral components into a three-dimensional supra­molecular framework. The compound was obtained serendipitously during investigations of reactions involving NbCl5 and o-phenyl­enedi­amine.