In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid, a.k.a. phosphoric acid H3PO4.
The phosphate or orthophosphate ion [PO
4]3−
is derived from phosphoric acid by the removal of three protons H+
. Removal of one proton gives the dihydrogen phosphate ion [H
2PO
4]−
while removal of two protons gives the hydrogen phosphate ion [HPO
4]2−
. These names are also used for salts of those anions, such as ammonium dihydrogen phosphate and trisodium phosphate.
In organic chemistry, phosphate or orthophosphate is an organophosphate, an ester of orthophosphoric acid of the form PO
4RR′R″ where one or more hydrogen atoms are replaced by organic groups. An example is trimethyl phosphate, (CH
3)
3PO
4. The term also refers to the trivalent functional group OP(O-)
3 in such esters. Phosphates may contain sulfur in place of one or more oxygen atoms (thiophosphates and organothiophosphates).
Orthophosphates are especially important among the various phosphates because of their key roles in biochemistry, biogeochemistry, and ecology, and their economic importance for agriculture and industry.[2] The addition and removal of phosphate groups (phosphorylation and dephosphorylation) are key steps in cell metabolism.
The phosphate ion has a molar mass of 94.97 g/mol, and consists of a central phosphorus atom surrounded by four oxygen atoms in a tetrahedral arrangement. It is the conjugate base of the hydrogen phosphate ion H(PO
4)2−
, which in turn is the conjugate base of the dihydrogen phosphate ion H
2(PO
4)−
, which in turn is the conjugate base of orthophosphoric acid, H
3PO
4.
Many phosphates are soluble in water at standard temperature and pressure. The sodium, potassium, rubidium, caesium, and ammonium phosphates are all water-soluble. Most other phosphates are only slightly soluble or are insoluble in water. As a rule, the hydrogen and dihydrogen phosphates are slightly more soluble than the corresponding phosphates.