Silver carbonate is a carbonate salt of silver. It is yellow in color, however normal samples are grayish due to the presence of elemental silver. It has low solubility and is decomposed by acids with the evolution of carbon dioxide. It is soluble in acetone, acetate, and alcohol. It is insoluble in water and tarnishes upon exposure to air and light. It is used in the manufacture of photographic materials such as film, and it is also employed in the oxidation of primary and secondary alcohols to produce aldehydes and ketones. It is used in microelectronics and for silver plating, and as a stain for biological specimens. It is also used in the Wittig reaction and for the preparation of other silver salts and catalysts.

Solubility is the ability of a solid, liquid or gaseous chemical substance called a solute to dissolve in another material known as a solvent. A substance’s solubility depends on the physical and chemical properties of both the solute and the solvent as well as temperature, pressure and pH. Silver carbonate is a very poorly soluble substance in water at room temperature. It is able to dissolve in boiling water and in nitric acid, but not in cold water or in aqueous solution. When a solution is saturated at its solubility point, adding more of the substance causes it to precipitate. This is a phenomenon known as saturation equilibrium.