Carbamic acid

Carbamic acid is a chemical compound. It has the chemical formula H2NCOOH. It has an amine functional group connected to a carboxylic acid group. Carbamic acids are a family of chemicals where one or more of the hydrogen atoms attached to the nitrogen are replaced by other functional groups. Salts and esters of carbamic acids are called carbamates.

The parent carbamic acid is very unstable. It will normally break apart into carbon dioxide and ammonia. Carbamates are more stable. Many carbamates were studied without making carbamic acid.[1]

Because the amine and carboxylic acid groups are on the same carbon atom, carbamic acid is not normally called an amino acid. The two groups being together gives carbamic acid chemical properties that are different from normal amines and carboxylic acids.[2]

Sources

  1. Adams, Phillip; Baron, Frank A. (1965). "Esters of Carbamic Acid". Chemical Reviews. 65 (5): 567–602. doi:10.1021/cr60237a002.
  2. Marks, Joshua H.; Wang, Jia; Sun, Bing-Jian; McAnally, Mason; Turner, Andrew M.; Chang, Agnes H.-H.; Kaiser, Ralf I. (2023). "Thermal Synthesis of Carbamic Acid and Its Dimer in Interstellar ICES: A Reservoir of Interstellar Amino Acids". ACS Central Science. 9 (12): 2241–2250. doi:10.1021/acscentsci.3c01108. PMC 10755733. PMID 38161363.