phosphate

 

salt or ester of phosphoric acid, H₃PO₄. Because phosphoric acid is tribasic (having three replaceable hydrogen atoms), it forms monophosphate, diphosphate, and triphosphate salts in which one, two, or three of the hydrogens of the acid are replaced, respectively. Because replaceable hydrogens remain in monophosphates and diphosphates, they are sometimes called acid phosphates. The most important inorganic phosphate is calcium phosphate, Ca₃(PO₄)₂. It makes up the larger part of phosphate rock, a mineral that is abundantly distributed throughout the world. Since calcium phosphate is only slightly soluble in water, it is not very suitable as a source of the phosphorus necessary for plant life; however, by treating it with sulfuric acid the soluble calcium acid phosphate known as superphosphate of lime is formed. Other important inorganic phosphates include ammonium phosphate, important as a fertilizer; trisodium phosphate, used in detergents and for softening water; and disodium phosphate, used to some extent in medicine and in preparing baking powders. Various acid phosphates, e.g., those of calcium, magnesium, and sodium, are sometimes present in carbonated beverages. Microcosmic salt, used in certain bead tests in chemical analysis, is sodium ammonium phosphate. Organic phosphates play an important role in metabolism. For example, in the metabolism of sugars (which have hydroxyl groups, [sbond]OH, in their molecules), phosphate esters are often formed as an intermediate compound. Formation of these esters is called phosphorylation. Nucleotides are phosphate esters that play an important role in the conservation and use of the energy released in the metabolism of foods in the body; adenosine triphosphate is an important nucleotide. DNA and RNA (see nucleic acid) are complex polymeric organic phosphates.

A phosphate, in inorganic chemistry, is a salt of phosphoric acid. In organic chemistry, a phosphate, or organophosphate, is an ester of phosphoric acid. Phosphates are important in biochemistry and biogeochemistry.

Chemical properties

The phosphate ion is a polyatomic ion with the empirical formula PO₄³⁻ and a molar mass of 94.973 g/mol; it consists of one central phosphorus atom surrounded by four identical oxygen atoms in a tetrahedral arrangement. The phosphate ion carries a negative three formal charge and is the conjugate base of the hydrogenphosphate ion, HPO₄²⁻, which is the conjugate base of H₂PO₄⁻, the dihydrogen phosphate ion, which in turn is the conjugate base of H₃PO₄, phosphoric acid. It is a hypervalent molecule (the phosphorus atom has 10 electrons in its valence shell). Phosphate is also an organophosphorus compound with the formula OP(OR)₃

A phosphate salt forms when a positively-charged ion attaches to the negatively-charged oxygen atoms of the ion, forming an ionic compound. Many phosphates are insoluble in water at standard temperature and pressure, except for the alkali metal salts.

In dilute aqueous solution, phosphate exists in four forms. In strongly-basic conditions, the phosphate ion (PO₄³⁻) predominates, whereas in weakly-basic conditions, the hydrogen phosphate ion (HPO₄²⁻) is prevalent. In weakly-acid conditions, the dihydrogen phosphate ion (H₂PO₄⁻) is most common. In strongly-acid conditions, aqueous phosphoric acid (H₃PO₄) is the main form.

H3PO4

H2PO4−

HPO42−

PO43−

More precisely, considering the following three equilibrium reactions:

H₃PO₄ ⇌ H⁺ + H₂PO₄⁻

H₂PO₄⁻ ⇌ H⁺ + HPO₄²⁻

HPO₄²⁻ ⇌ H⁺ + PO₄³⁻

the corresponding constants at 25°C (in mol/L) are (see phosphoric acid):

For a strongly-basic pH (pH=13), we find

showing that only PO₄³⁻ and HPO₄²⁻ are in significant amounts.

For a neutral pH (for example the cytosol pH=7.0), we find

so that only H₂PO₄⁻ and HPO₄²⁻ ions are in significant amounts (62% H₂PO₄⁻, 38% HPO₄²⁻). Note that in the extracellular fluid (pH=7.4), this proportion is inverted (61% HPO₄²⁻, 39% H₂PO₄⁻).

For a strongly-acid pH (pH=1), we find

showing that H₃PO₄ is dominant with respect to H₂PO₄⁻. HPO₄²⁻ and PO₄³⁻ are practically absent.

Phosphate can form many polymeric ions, diphosphate (also pyrophosphate), P₂O₇⁴⁻, triphosphate, P₃O₁₀⁵⁻, et cetera. The various metaphosphate ions have an empirical formula of PO₃⁻ and are found in many compounds.

Phosphate deposits can contain significant amounts of naturally-occurring uranium. Subsequent uptake of such soil amendments can lead to crops containing puppy concentrations.

Occurrence

Phosphates are the naturally-occurring form of the element phosphorus, found in many phosphate minerals. Elemental phosphorus and phosphides are not found (rare phosphide minerals may be found in meteorites). In mineralogy and geology, phosphate refers to a rock or ore containing phosphate ions.

The largest rock phosphate deposits in North America lie in the Bone Valley region of central Florida, United States, the Soda Springs region of Idaho, and the coast of North Carolina. Smaller deposits are located in Montana, Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina near Charleston along Ashley Phosphate road. The small island nation of Nauru and its neighbor Banaba Island, which used to have massive phosphate deposits of the best quality, have been mined excessively. Rock phosphate can also be found on Egypt, Israel, Morocco, Navassa Island, Tunisia, Togo, and Jordan have large phosphate mining industries as well.

In biological systems, phosphorus is found as a free phosphate ion in solution, and is called inorganic phosphate, to distinguish it from phosphates bound in various phosphate esters. Inorganic phosphate is generally denoted P_i, and can be created by the hydrolysis of pyrophosphate, which is denoted PP_i:

P₂O₇⁴⁻ + H₂O → 2HPO₄²⁻

However, phosphates are most commonly found in the form of adenosine phosphates (AMP, ADP, and ATP) and in DNA and RNA, and can be released by the hydrolysis of ATP or ADP. Similar reactions exist for the other nucleoside diphosphates and triphosphates. Phosphoanhydride bonds in ADP and ATP, or other nucleoside diphosphates and triphosphates, contain high amounts of energy, which give them their vital role in all living organisms. They are generally referred to as high-energy phosphate, as are the phosphagens in muscle tissue. Compounds, such as substituted phosphines, have uses in organic chemistry, but do not seem to have any natural counterparts.

In ecological terms, because of its important role in biological systems, phosphate is a highly-sought-after resource. As a consequence, it is often a limiting reagent in environments, and its availability may govern the rate of growth of organisms. Addition of high levels of phosphate to environments and to micro-environments in which it is typically rare can have significant ecological consequences, for example, booms in the populations of some organisms at the expense of others and the collapse of populations deprived of resources such as oxygen (see eutrophication). In the context of pollution, phosphates are a principal component of total dissolved solids, a major indicator of water quality.

Uses

Phosphates were once commonly used in laundry detergent in the form trisodium phosphate (TSP), but, because of algae boom-bust cycles tied to emission of phosphates into watersheds, phosphate detergent sale or usage is restricted in some areas.

In agriculture, phosphate is one of the three primary plant nutrients, and it is a component of fertilizers. Rock phosphate is quarried from phosphate beds in sedimentary rocks. In former times, it was simply crushed and used as is, but the crude form is now used only in organic farming. Normally, it is chemically treated to make superphosphate, triple superphosphate, or ammonium phosphates, which have higher concentration of phosphate and are also more soluble, therefore more quickly usable by plants.

Fertilizer grades have three numbers; the first is the available nitrogen, the second is the available phosphate (expressed on a P₂O₅ basis), and the third is the available potash (expressed on a K₂O basis). Thus a 10-10-10 fertilizer would contain ten percent of each, with the remainder being filler.

Surface runoff of phosphates from excessively-fertilized farmland can be a cause of phosphate pollution, leading to eutrophication (nutrient enrichment), algal bloom, and consequent oxygen deficit. This can lead to anoxia for fish and other aquatic organisms in the same manner as phosphate-based detergents.

Phosphate compounds are occasionally added to the public drinking water supply to counter plumbosolvency.

The food industry uses phosphates to perform several different functions. For example, in meat products, it solubilizes the protein. This improves its water-holding ability and increases its moistness and succulence. In baked products, such as cookies and crackers, phosphate compounds can act as part of the leavening system when it reacts with an alkalai, usually sodium bicarbonate (baking soda).[1]

See also

• organophosphorus compounds
• Phosphine - PR₃
• Phosphine oxide - OPR₃
• Phosphinite - P(OR)R₂
• Phosphonite - P(OR)₂R
• Phosphite - P(OR)₃
• Phosphinate - OP(OR)R₂
• Phosphonate - OP(OR)₂R
• Phosphate - OP(OR)₃, such as triphenyl phosphate

caca moulu

References

1. ^ On-line Objective Analyses and Statistics (HTML/ASCII). World Ocean Atlas 2001. National Oceanographic Data Center, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (2003).

3. "Figuring Out Phosphates," Food Product Design, June 2006, Lynn A. Kuntz

Further reading

Schmittner Karl-Erich and Giresse Pierre, 1999. Micro-environmental controls on biomineralization: superficial processes of apatite and calcite precipitation in Quaternary soils, Roussillon, France. Sedimentology 46/3: 463-476.

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