What Are The Products Of The Decomposition Of Metal Nitrates?

Question

List some examples, preferably with equations; much appreciated.

Answer 1

Different metal nitrates may give different products upon thermal decomposition.

Group 2 metals (like magnesium) give NO2 and O2 as well as the metal oxide:

2 Mg(NO3)2 (s) --> 2 MgO (s) + 4 NO2 (g) + O2 (g)

Group 1 metals are different. Lithium acts similar:

4 LiNO3 (s) --> 2 Li2O (s) + 4 NO2 (g) + O2 (g)

but the other Group1 metals (like Sodium):

2 NaNO3 (s) --> 2 NaNO2 (s) + O2 (g)

Other metals tend to give a mixture of Nitrogen oxides.

Answer 2

Nitrate Decomposition

Answer 3

Different metal nitrates may give different products upon thermal decomposition.

Group 2 metals (like magnesium) give NO2 and O2 as well as the metal oxide:
2 Mg(NO3)2 (s) --> 2 MgO (s) + 4 NO2 (g) + O2 (g)
Group 1 metals are different. Lithium acts similar:
4 LiNO3 (s) --> 2 Li2O (s) + 4 NO2 (g) + O2 (g)
but the other Group1 metals (like Sodium):
2 NaNO3 (s) --> 2 NaNO2 (s) + O2 (g)
Other metals tend to give a mixture of Nitrogen oxides.

Answer 4

Depending on the standard reduction potentials, the nitrate could be reduced in different ways:
- NO3- + 4H+ + 3e- -> NO + 2H2O
- NO3- + 2H+ -> NO2 + H2O

The metal ion will generally form a solid precipitate

Answer 5

Depends on the metal and its oxidation state. Some give N2, some give nitrogen oxides of various forms. Some even rearrange internally or just disproportionate.

LiNO3 -> LiO + NO2