---
title: "Carbonate ion Template – Free Chemistry Diagram | MolDraw"
url: https://www.moldraw.com/templates/resonance-carbonate/
description: "Carbonate ion template: CO₃²⁻: each O⁻ lone pair in turn forms C=O as the C=O π bond moves onto another oxygen; three equivalent forms, three equal C–O…"
lang: en
publisher: Scidart Academy
generated: 2026-10-28
---
[MolDraw](https://www.moldraw.com/) › [Templates](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/) › [Resonance](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/resonance/) › Carbonate ion

[Resonance](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/resonance/)Free

# Carbonate ion template

![Carbonate ion template: CO₃²⁻: each O⁻ lone pair in turn forms C=O as the C=O π bond moves onto another oxygen; three equivalent forms, three equal C–O bonds.](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/download/resonance-carbonate.svg)

[Edit in MolDraw](https://www.moldraw.com/)[Download SVG](https://www.moldraw.com/templates/download/resonance-carbonate.svg)

Free template. Download it, or open it in MolDraw to change it first.

CO₃²⁻: each O⁻ lone pair in turn forms C=O as the C=O π bond moves onto another oxygen; three equivalent forms, three equal C–O bonds.

## What the template shows

- Three equivalent contributors for CO₃²⁻
- Resonance contributors
- Three equivalent forms
- All three C–O bonds are equal (about 129 pm): bond order 1⅓.
- Each oxygen carries a charge of −⅔; the ion is planar and trigonal (120°).
- Nitrate (NO₃⁻) has the same number of valence electrons and the same three forms.
- Contributors are not in equilibrium: the real species is one hybrid of them · every part of this figure is editable

Drawn with 12 atoms, 6 arrows, 2 shapes – every one editable in MolDraw.

## Sources

- [Housecroft & Sharpe, Inorganic Chemistry, 5th ed., Pearson 2018](https://openlibrary.org/isbn/9781292134147) Textbook

## How to use this template

1. Press **Edit in MolDraw**. The template opens on the canvas of the free MolDraw editor.
2. Change anything: move structures, edit atoms and labels, recolour highlights or delete what you do not need.
3. Add your own structures, arrows and text next to it, or combine several templates on one page.
4. Export the drawing as PNG, SVG or PDF for slides, worksheets, theses and papers.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is the Carbonate ion template free?

Yes. The Carbonate ion template is one of the free MolDraw templates: open it in the editor or download it from this page as SVG or PNG and use it in your slides, worksheets and notes.

### Can I edit the Carbonate ion template?

Yes. It opens as an ordinary MolDraw drawing, so every structure, arrow, label and colour can be changed, and you can add your own content around it.

### Is the chemistry checked?

Every structure is checked with RDKit and every curly arrow passes MolDraw’s electron-flow audit. The sources used are listed on this page.

### How are resonance structures shown?

Each contributor is drawn separately, joined by double-headed resonance arrows, with curly arrows showing how the electrons move from one contributor to the next.

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