carbonate, chemical compound containing the carbonate radical or ion, CO₃^-2. Most familiar carbonates are salts that are formed by reacting an inorganic base (e.g., a metal hydroxide) with carbonic acid. Normal carbonates are formed when equivalent amounts of acid and base react; bicarbonates, also called acid carbonates or hydrogen carbonates, are formed when the acid is present in excess. Sodium carbonate, Na₂CO₃, sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO₃, and potassium carbonate, K₂CO₃, are widely used. Smelling salts is ammonium carbonate. Calcium carbonate is found in shells of animals and in Iceland spar, limestone, and marble; it is used in the production of lime (calcium oxide). Barium carbonate occurs as the mineral witherite. Magnesium carbonate occurs as magnesite and in dolomite (with calcium carbonate). Iron carbonate is a ferrous compound that occurs in nature as siderite. White lead used as a pigment in paints is basic lead carbonate. Only ammonium, potassium, and sodium carbonates are readily soluble in water. Alkali metal carbonates are stable when heated, but other carbonates decompose, releasing carbon dioxide. Carbonates also give off carbon dioxide when treated with dilute acids, e.g., hydrochloric acid.

Any member of a family of minerals that contains the carbonate ion, CO₃²⁻, as the basic structural unit. The carbonates are among the most widely distributed minerals in the earth's crust; the most common are calcite, dolomite, and aragonite. Dolomite replaces calcite in limestones; when this replacement is extensive, the rock is called dolomite. Other relatively common carbonate minerals are siderite, rhodochrosite, strontianite (strontium-rich); smithsonite (zinc-rich); witherite (barium-rich); and cerussite (lead-rich).

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Any member of two classes of chemical compounds—one inorganic and the other organic—that are derived from carbon dioxide (CO₂) or its water solution, carbonic acid (H₂CO₃). Inorganic carbonates (MCO₃ or M₂CO₃, where M is a metal atom of, e.g., calcium or sodium) are salts of carbonic acid. The shells and other hard parts of shellfish are calcium carbonate, as is the limestone they turn into. Many other minerals, including calcite, dolomite, and aragonite, consist of or contain carbonates. Sodium carbonate is one of the world's most important basic chemical commodities. Organic carbonates are esters of carbonic acid and various alcohol groups (methyl, ethyl, or phenyl). These are liquids used as solvents and to synthesize plastics and other compounds.

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In chemistry, a carbonate is a salt or ester of carbonic acid.

Applications

To test for the presence of the carbonate anion in a salt, the addition of dilute mineral acid (e.g. hydrochloric acid) will yield carbon dioxide gas.

Carbonate-containing salts are industrially and mineralogically ubiquitous. The term "carbonate" is also commonly used to refer to one of these salts or carbonate minerals. Most common is calcite, or calcium carbonate, CaCO₃, the chief constituent of limestone. The process of removing carbon dioxide from these salts by heating is called calcination.

The term is also used as a verb, to describe the process of raising carbonate and bicarbonate concentrations in soda, see also carbonated water, either by the introduction under pressure of carbon dioxide gas into the bottle, or by dissolving carbonate or bicarbonate salts into the water.

Structure and bonding

The carbonate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula CO₃²⁻ and a molecular mass of 60.01 daltons; it consists of one central carbon atom surrounded by three identical oxygen atoms in a trigonal planar arrangement, and has D_3h molecular symmetry. The carbonate ion carries a negative two formal charge and is the conjugate base of the hydrogen carbonate ion, HCO₃⁻, which is the conjugate base of H₂CO₃, carbonic acid.

The structure and bonding of the carbonate ion cannot be properly represented by its Lewis structure, which depicts CO₃²⁻ with two long single bonds and one short double bond:

Resonance structures can be used to depict the carbonate ion:

In reality, CO₃²⁻ has three equally long C-O bonds:

Chemical properties

A carbonate salt forms when a positively charged ion attaches to the negatively charged oxygen atoms of the ion, forming an ionic compound:

2M⁺ + CO₃²⁻ → M₂CO₃

M²⁺ + CO₃²⁻ → MCO₃

2M³⁺ + 3CO₃²⁻ → M₂(CO₃)₃

Most carbonate salts are insoluble in water at standard temperature and pressure, with solubility constants of less than 1×10⁻⁸. Exceptions include sodium, potassium and ammonium carbonates.

In aqueous solution, carbonate, bicarbonate, carbon dioxide, and carbonic acid exist together in a dynamic equilibrium. In strongly basic conditions, the carbonate ion predominates, while in weakly basic conditions, the bicarbonate ion is prevalent. In more acid conditions, aqueous carbon dioxide, CO₂(aq), is the main form, which, with water, H₂O, is in equilibrium with carbonic acid - the equilibrium lies strongly towards carbon dioxide. Thus sodium carbonate is basic, sodium bicarbonate is weakly basic, while carbon dioxide itself is a weak acid.

Carbonated water is formed by dissolving CO₂ in water under pressure. When the partial pressure of CO₂ is reduced, for example when a can of soda is opened, the equilibrium for each of the forms of carbonate (carbonate, bicarbonate, carbon dioxide, and carbonic acid) shifts until the concentration of CO₂ in the solution is equal to the solubility of CO₂ at that temperature and pressure. In living systems an enzyme, carbonic anhydrase, speeds the interconversion of CO₂ and carbonic acid.

Acid-base chemistry

The carbonate ion (CO₃²⁻) is a moderately strong base. It is a conjugate base of the weakly acidic bicarbonate (IUPAC name hydrogen carbonate HCO₃⁻), itself a moderately strong conjugate base of the still weakly acidic carbonic acid. As such in aqueous solution, the carbonate ion seeks to reclaim hydrogen atoms.

Organic carbonates

In organic chemistry a carbonate can also refer to a functional group within a larger molecule that contains a carbon atom bound to three oxygen atoms, one which is double bonded. These compounds are also known as organocarbonates or carbonate esters, and have the general formula ROCOOR′, or RR′CO₃. Important organocarbonates include dimethyl carbonate, the cyclic compounds ethylene carbonate and propylene carbonate, and the toxic triphosgene.

Biological Significance

It works as a buffer in the blood as follows: when pH is too low, the concentration of hydrogen ions is too high, so you exhale CO₂. This will cause the equation to shift left, essentially decreasing the concentration of H⁺ ions, causing a more basic pH.

When pH is too high, the concentration of hydrogen ions in the blood is too low, so the kidneys excrete bicarbonate (HCO₃⁻). This causes the equation to shift right, essentially increasing the concentration of hydrogen ions, causing a more acidic pH.

Carbonate salts

• Carbonate overview:

History

It is generally thought that the presence of carbonates in rock is unequivocal evidence for the presence of liquid water. Recent observations of the Planetary nebula NGC 6302 shows evidence for carbonates in space, where aqueous alteration similar to that on Earth is unlikely. Other minerals have been proposed which would fit the observations.

Significant carbonate deposits have not been found on Mars via remote sensing or in situ missions, even though Martian meteorites contain small amounts and groundwater may have existed at both Gusev and Meridiani Planum.

References

See also

Bicarbonate