The acid is useful in the laboratory because of its resistance to oxidation , to reduction , and to evaporation . Among the many uses of phosphoric acid are as an ingredient in soft drinks and dental cements, as a catalyst , in rustproofing metals , and in making phosphates, which are used in water softeners, fertilizers, and detergents . Depending on the number of hydrogen atom s that are replaced, the resulting compound is described as a primary, secondary, or tertiary phosphate. Also known as trisodium phosphate, tertiary sodium phosphate is valuable as a detergent and water softener. Primary and secondary phosphates contain hydrogen and are acid salts.
Phosphates are important to metabolism in both plants and animals.
To provide cattle with phosphate, dicalcium phosphate, CaHPO 4 2H 2 O, is used as a food supplement. Increasing attention has been focused on the environmentally harmful effects of phosphates in household detergents. Beginning in the 1970s, some regions of the United States and Canada banned or put strict limits on the amount of phosphates that detergents could contain. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.