Nitrate radical
|  | |||
| Names | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| IUPAC name Nitrate radical | |||
| Systematic IUPAC name Trioxidonitrogen(•) | |||
| Other names Nitrooxy radical | |||
| Identifiers | |||
| 3D model (JSmol) | |||
| ChEBI | |||
| ChemSpider | |||
| 1573 | |||
| PubChem CID | |||
| CompTox Dashboard (EPA) | |||
| 
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| 
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| Properties | |||
| NO3 | |||
| Molar mass | 62.004 g·mol−1 | ||
| Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa). Infobox references | |||
Nitrogen trioxide or nitrate radical is an oxide of nitrogen with formula NO
3, consisting of three oxygen atoms covalently bound to a nitrogen atom.  This highly unstable blue compound has not been isolated in pure form, but can be generated and observed as a short-lived component of gas, liquid, or solid systems.
Like nitrogen dioxide NO
2, it is a radical (a molecule with an unpaired valence electron), which makes it paramagnetic.  It is the uncharged counterpart of the nitrate anion NO−
3 and an isomer of the peroxynitrite radical OONO.
Nitrogen trioxide is an important intermediate in reactions between atmospheric components, including the destruction of ozone.