Aluminium carbonate
Aluminium carbonate (Al2(CO3)3), is a carbonate of aluminium. It is not well characterized; one authority says that simple carbonates of aluminium are not known.[1] Basic sodium aluminium carbonate, the mineral dawsonite, is a known compound.
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| Other names
Aluminum carbonate | |
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| ChemSpider | |
| ECHA InfoCard | 100.034.930 |
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CompTox Dashboard (EPA) |
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| Properties | |
| Al2(CO3)3 | |
| Appearance | white powder, unstable |
| reacts | |
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa). | |
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| Infobox references | |
Preparation
There is no evidence that aluminium carbonate is formed in double displacement reactions; soluble carbonates are sufficiently alkaline to precipitate aluminium hydroxide and produce carbon dioxide.[2] The reaction of aluminium sulfate and sodium bicarbonate forms carbon dioxide and aluminium hydroxide which stabilises the formation of a foam.[2] This reaction was the basis of an early fire extinguisher invented by Aleksandr Loran in 1904.
Uses
Aluminium carbonate, along with aluminium hydroxide and aluminium oxide, is a phosphate-binding drug that is sometimes administered to dogs and cats to bind intestinal phosphate and prevent the absorption of dietary phosphate as well as to decrease absorption of phosphate excreted by the pancreas. It is seldom used in humans because of concerns with toxicity, but cats and dogs do not appear to have a toxic response to its presence.[3]
References
- Anthony John Downs, (1993), Chemistry of Aluminium, Gallium, Indium, and Thallium, Springer, ISBN 978-0-7514-0103-5
- Moody, Bernard (2013). Comparative Inorganic Chemistry. Elsevier. p. 311. ISBN 9781483280080.
- Deborah Silverstein; Kate Hopper (13 February 2008). Small Animal Critical Care Medicine - E-Book. Elsevier Health Sciences. p. 5. ISBN 1-4160-6926-7.