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Concept
Magnesium carbonate
Summary
Magnesium carbonate, (archaic name magnesia alba), is an inorganic salt that is a colourless or white solid. Several hydrated and basic forms of magnesium carbonate also exist as minerals.
The most common magnesium carbonate forms are the anhydrous salt called magnesite (), and the di, tri, and pentahydrates known as barringtonite (), nesquehonite (), and lansfordite (), respectively. Some basic forms such as artinite (), hydromagnesite (), and dypingite () also occur as minerals. All of those minerals are colourless or white.
Magnesite consists of colourless or white trigonal crystals. The anhydrous salt is practically insoluble in water, acetone, and ammonia. All forms of magnesium carbonate react with acids. Magnesite crystallizes in the calcite structure wherein is surrounded by six oxygen atoms.
The dihydrate has a triclinic structure, while the trihydrate has a monoclinic structure.
References to "light" and "heavy" magnesium carbonates actually refer to the magnesium hydroxy carbonates hydromagnesite and dypingite, respectively.
Magnesium carbonate is ordinarily obtained by mining the mineral magnesite. Seventy percent of the world's supply is mined and prepared in China.
Magnesium carbonate can be prepared in laboratory by reaction between any soluble magnesium salt and sodium bicarbonate:
If magnesium chloride (or sulfate) is treated with aqueous sodium carbonate, a precipitate of basic magnesium carbonate – a hydrated complex of magnesium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide – rather than magnesium carbonate itself is formed:
High purity industrial routes include a path through magnesium bicarbonate, which can be formed by combining a slurry of magnesium hydroxide and carbon dioxide at high pressure and moderate temperature. The bicarbonate is then vacuum dried, causing it to lose carbon dioxide and a molecule of water:
Like many common group 2 metal carbonates, magnesium carbonate reacts with aqueous acids to release carbon dioxide and water:
At high temperatures MgCO3 decomposes to magnesium oxide and carbon dioxide.
Official source
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