Ammonium acetate

Ammonium acetate is the ionic compound CH₃COONH₄, composed of ammonium cations and acetate anions. It is a water-soluble salt whose aqueous solution can act as a buffer.

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Ammonium ion: The polyatomic cation NH₄⁺, formed when ammonia accepts a proton. It supplies the positively charged ion in ammonium acetate.
Dissociation: The separation of a compound into smaller particles, such as ions in solution. Water separates ammonium acetate into ammonium and acetate ions.
Ammonium acetate buffer: A buffer system containing ammonium acetate, often adjusted with acetic acid or ammonia. This formulation uses the salt's conjugate acid–base pairs to control pH.
Sodium acetate: The ionic compound CH₃COONa, composed of sodium cations and acetate anions. It shares acetate but replaces ammonium with a nonvolatile alkali-metal cation.
Acetate: The anion CH₃COO⁻, formed when acetic acid loses a proton. It supplies the negatively charged ion in ammonium acetate.
Acid–base equilibrium: A reversible proton-transfer balance among acids, bases, and their conjugates. The dissolved ions exchange protons with water and with each other.
Mass spectrometry: An analytical technique that separates ions by their mass-to-charge ratios. Volatile ammonium acetate is commonly used as a mobile-phase additive in electrospray analysis.
Ammonium chloride: The ionic compound NH₄Cl, composed of ammonium cations and chloride anions. It shares ammonium but pairs it with a strongly acidic anion instead of acetate.
Ionic compound: A substance whose ions are held together by electrostatic attraction. Ammonium acetate is a salt built from oppositely charged ions.
Buffer solution: A solution that resists pH change through a weak acid–base pair and its conjugate. Ammonium acetate can support buffering through the acetic acid/acetate and ammonium/ammonia pairs.