nitrate

Nitrate is a polyatomic ion with the chemical formula . Salts containing this ion are called nitrates. Nitrates are common components of fertilizers and explosives. Almost all inorganic nitrates are soluble in water. An example of an insoluble (inorganic) nitrate is bismuth oxynitrate.

AI overview

Nitrate is a chemical compound made of nitrogen and oxygen atoms that dissolves easily in water and is commonly found in fertilizers and explosives. It matters because it's a widespread industrial chemical with important applications in agriculture and other industries, though its environmental impact—particularly when it contaminates water supplies—is a significant concern.

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Research

102,523 papers

Dietary nitrate supplementation and exercise performance.ReviewSports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2014Jones AMDOI: 10.1007/s40279-014-0149-y
Nitrate: "the source makes the poison".ReviewCritical reviews in food science and nutrition · 2025Bowles EF, Burleigh M, Mira A et al.DOI: 10.1080/10408398.2024.2395488
Nitrate tolerance.ReviewInternational journal of cardiology · 1986Cowan JCDOI: 10.1016/0167-5273(86)90094-x
Effects of Nitrate Supplementation on Exercise Performance in Humans: A Narrative Review.ReviewNutrients · 2021Macuh M, Knap BDOI: 10.3390/nu13093183
Nitrate and periplasmic nitrate reductases.ReviewChemical Society reviews · 2014Sparacino-Watkins C, Stolz JF, Basu PDOI: 10.1039/c3cs60249d
Nitrate and Nitrites in Foods: Worldwide Regional Distribution in View of Their Risks and Benefits.ReviewJournal of agricultural and food chemistry · 2019Kalaycıoğlu Z, Erim FBDOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.9b01194
Dietary nitrate--good or bad?ReviewNitric oxide : biology and chemistry · 2010Gilchrist M, Winyard PG, Benjamin NDOI: 10.1016/j.niox.2009.10.005
Dietary nitrate and blood pressure: evolution of a new nutrient?ReviewNutrition research reviews · 2017Ashworth A, Bescos RDOI: 10.1017/S0954422417000063

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Wikidata facts

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Commons category: Nitrates

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Article

21 sections

Contents

Chemical structure
Chemical and biochemical properties
Detection in chemical analysis
Occurrence and production
Uses
Agriculture
Firearms
Industrial
Medicinal and pharmaceutical use
Toxicity and safety
Methemoglobinemia
Drinking water standards
Aquatic toxicity
Human impacts on ecosystems through nitrate deposition
Dietary nitrate
Cured meats
Domestic animal feed
Salts and covalent derivatives
See also
References
External links

In nature, nitrates are produced by a number of species of nitrifying bacteria in the natural environment using ammonia or urea as a source of nitrogen and source of free energy. Nitrate compounds for gunpowder were historically produced, in the absence of mineral nitrate sources, by means of various fermentation processes using urine and dung. Modern nitrate production is mostly focused on creation for fertilizer and chemical manufacturing for various applications, such as medicine synthesis, ceramics and preservation of meat. Annually, about 195 million metric tons of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers are used worldwide, with nitrates constituting a significant portion of this amount.