Silver carbonate
Silver carbonate is the chemical compound with the formula Ag2CO3. Silver carbonate is yellow but typical samples are grayish due to the presence of elemental silver. It is poorly soluble in water, like most transition metal carbonates.Preparation and reactions
Silver carbonate can be prepared by combining aqueous solutions of sodium carbonate with a deficiency of silver nitrate.
Freshly prepared silver carbonate is colourless, but the solid quickly turns yellow.
Silver carbonate reacts with ammonia to give the explosive fulminating silver.
With hydrofluoric acid, it gives silver fluoride. The thermal conversion of silver carbonate to silver metal proceeds via formation of silver oxide:Uses
The principal use of silver carbonate is for the production of silver powder for use in microelectronics. It is reduced with formaldehyde, producing silver free of alkali metals:
Silver carbonate is used as a reagent in organic synthesis such as the Koenigs-Knorr reaction. In the Fétizon oxidation, silver carbonate on celite serves as an oxidising agent to form lactones from diols. It is also employed to convert alkyl bromides into alcohols. As a base, it has been used in the Wittig reaction. and in C-H bond activation.
