Ammonium bicarbonate (commonly known as ammonium hydrogen carbonate) is a mildly basic inorganic compound.
Ammonium bicarbonate is a commonly used reagent for industrial and research procedures. Ammonium bicarbonate is volatile in solution and releases ammonia and CO2. This property makes ammonium bicarbonate a good buffer for such applications as lyophilization and matrix assisted laser desorption. Ammonium bicarbonate is also utilized for the in-gel digestion of proteins by trypsin and in the MALDI mass spectrometric analysis of proteins.
Ammonium bicarbonate is used as a baking powder, in some food processing applications, in cough syrups and as antacid. It also has uses as a fertilizer, pH buffer, and reagent in chemical laboratories. In the industry, it is used in the manufacture of dyes, pharmaceuticals, catalysts, ceramics, fire-retardants, plastics and other products.
