Talk:Aqua regia

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Chemistry C‑class Mid‑importance

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Dissolving Gold Mistake

The sentence "Nitric acid is a powerful oxidizer, which will actually dissolve a virtually undetectable amount of gold, forming gold ions (Au3+)" is not accurate. Look at the standard reduction potentials for nitric acid and gold.

Au³⁺ + 3e^- → Au - - - - - - - - - - - - - - E = 1.5 V

NO₃^- + 4H⁺ + 3e^- → NO + 2H₂O - - - E = 0.96 V

Nitric acid CANNOT oxidize gold by itself. The function of the chlorides is not simply to make the gold soluble. I would really appreciate it if someone who actually knows something about the mechanism of aqua regia oxidation of gold would share their knowledge with us. I have heard that a chlorine intermediate in reaction of nitric acid and HCl plays a key role, but that is just hearsay. Without any serious mechanistic studies, we are just guessing. At the very least, our guessing should not violate the most basic rules of redox chemistry. El Zarco 06:46, 9 October 2011 (UTC)

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