Is the Oxidation State of Nitrate Really +5 or +4?

[Spirochete]

Why does nitrate (NO3-) have an oxidation state of +5? Doesn't it have 4 bonds to oxygen? Shouldn't that give it an oxidation state of +4?

 

[eli64]

read this, http://http://www.chem.lsu.edu/lucid/allen/OxNumbers.htm"

Oxidation numbers are not determined by the number of bonds to the atom

 

[Spirochete]

That link doesn't work for me and I am still wondering about this topic. Anybody else want to fill me in?

 

[Borek]

Try here:

http://www.chembuddy.com/?left=balancing-stoichiometry&right=oxidation-numbers-method

 

[Kushal]

In NO3-, the negative charge is on the oxygen. in molecular form, it would have been nitric acid, HNO3. there is an N-O-H bond, a N=O bond and a N<=O bond (dative).

In NO3-, the N-O-H bond becomes N-O^-

it has 5 'bonds' to oxygen. (1 double bond, 1 dative double bond and 1 single bond with O-)

 

[GCT]

Spirochete-Are you referring to the oxidation state of the nitrogen atom?