chemistry

Magnesium oxalate

Magnesium oxalate is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Magnesium oxalate rather than just read about it. In short: Magnesium oxalate is an organic compound comprising a magnesium cation with a 2+ charge bonded to an oxalate anion. It has the chemical formula MgC2O4.

Key takeaways

Magnesium oxalate belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Magnesium oxalate to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Magnesium oxalate from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Magnesium oxalate is an organic compound comprising a magnesium cation with a 2+ charge bonded to an oxalate anion. It has the chemical formula MgC2O4. Magnesium oxalate is a white solid that comes in two forms: an anhydrous form and a dihydrate form where two water molecules are complexed with the structure. Both forms are practically insoluble in water and are insoluble in organic solutions.

Natural occurrence Magnesium oxalate has been found naturally near Mill of Johnston, which is located close to Insch in northeast Scotland. This naturally occurring magnesium oxalate is called glushinskite and occurs at the lichen/rock interface on serpentinite as a creamy white layer mixed in with the hyphae of the lichen fungus. A scanning electron micrograph of samples taken showed that the crystals had a pyramidal structure with both curved and striated faces. The size of these crystals ranged from 2 to 5 μm.

Synthesis and reactions Magnesium oxalate can by synthesized by combining a magnesium salt or ion with an oxalate.

Mg2+ + C2O42− → MgC2O4 A specific example of a synthesis would be mixing Mg(NO3)2 and KOH and then adding that solution to dimethyl oxalate, (COOCH3)2. When heated, magnesium oxalate will decompose. First, the dihydrate will decompose at 150 °C into the anhydrous form.

MgC2O4•2H2O → MgC2O4 + 2 H2O With additional heating the anhydrous form will decompose further into magnesium oxide and carbon oxides between 420 °C and 620 °C. First, carbon monoxide and magnesium carbonate form. The carbon monoxide then oxidizes to carbon dioxide, and the magnesium carbonate decomposes further to magnesium oxide and carbon dioxide.

MgC2O4 → MgCO3 + CO CO + 1/2 O2 → CO2 MgCO3 → MgO + CO2 Magnesium oxalate dihydrate has also been used in the synthesis of nano sized particles of magnesium oxide, which have larger surface-area-to-volume ratio than conventionally synthesized particles and are optimal for various applications, such as in catalysis. By using a sol-gel synthesis, which involves combining a magnesium salt, in this case magnesium oxalate, with a gelating agent, nano sized particles of magnesium oxide can be produced.

Health and safety Magnesium oxalate is a skin and eye irritant. If inhaled, it will irritate the lungs and mucous membranes. Magnesium oxalate has no known chronic effects nor any carcinogenic effects. Magnesium oxalate is non-flammable and stable, but in fire conditions it will give off toxic fumes. According to OSHA, magnesium oxalate is considered to be hazardous.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Magnesium oxalate

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Magnesium oxalate claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Magnesium oxalate before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Magnesium oxalate ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Magnesium oxalate

In research: Magnesium oxalate appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Magnesium oxalate in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Magnesium oxalate is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Inorganic compounds, Magnesium compounds, Oxalates, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Magnesium oxalate outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Magnesium oxalate in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Magnesium oxalate means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Magnesium oxalate out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Magnesium oxalate in simple terms?

Magnesium oxalate is an organic compound comprising a magnesium cation with a 2+ charge bonded to an oxalate anion. It has the chemical formula MgC2O4.

Why does Magnesium oxalate matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Magnesium oxalate?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Magnesium oxalate.