Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 3, 2026

Lead citrate

Lead citrate is a compound of lead and citrate that is primarily used as an enhancer for heavy metal staining in electron microscopy. This salt binds to osmium and uranyl acetate and enhances contrast in many cellular structures. Lead citrate is highly reactive with carbon dioxide.

Last revised
Jul 3, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
212 w
Citations
2
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Lead citrate
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Names
IUPAC name
2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylate; lead(2+); trihydrate
Other names
Lead citrate trihydrate
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ChemSpider
ECHA InfoCard 100.007.402
EC Number
  • 208-141-1
  • InChI=1S/2C6H8O7.3Pb/c2*7-3(8)1-6(13,5(11)12)2-4(9)10;;;/h2*13H,1-2H2,(H,7,8)(H,9,10)(H,11,12);;;/q;;3*+2/p-6
    Key: HOQPTLCRWVZIQZ-UHFFFAOYSA-H
  • C(C(=O)[O-])C(CC(=O)[O-])(C(=O)[O-])O.C(C(=O)[O-])C(CC(=O)[O-])(C(=O)[O-])O.[Pb+2].[Pb+2].[Pb+2]
  • trihydrate: C(C(=O)[O-])C(CC(=O)[O-])(C(=O)[O-])O.C(C(=O)[O-])C(CC(=O)[O-])(C(=O)[O-])O.O.O.O.[Pb+2].[Pb+2].[Pb+2]
Properties
C12H10O14Pb3
Molar mass 999.8 g·mol−1
Appearance White odorless powder or crystals
Density 4.63 g/cm3
Boiling point 309.6 °C (589.3 °F; 582.8 K)
Soluble in water, slightly soluble in alcohol1
Hazards
GHS labelling:
GHS07: Exclamation markGHS08: Health hazardGHS09: Environmental hazard
Danger
H302, H332, H360, H373, H410
P201, P202, P260, P264, P270, P271, P273, P281, P301+P312, P304+P312, P304+P340, P308+P313, P312, P314, P330, P391, P405, P501
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).

Lead citrate is a compound of lead and citrate that is primarily used as an enhancer for heavy metal staining in electron microscopy.2 This salt binds to osmium and uranyl acetate and enhances contrast in many cellular structures. Lead citrate is highly reactive with carbon dioxide.

References

References

  1. Dale Perry (April 2016). Handbook of Inorganic Compounds. CRC Press. p. 225.
  2. Arun Sharma and Archana Sharma (2014). Chromosome Techniques: Theory and Practice. Butterworth-Heinemann. p. 285.