lead acetate, chemical compound, a white crystalline substance with a sweetish taste. Like other lead compounds, it is very poisonous. Lead acetate is soluble in water and glycerin. With water it forms the trihydrate, Pb(CH3COO)2·3H2O, a colorless or white efflorescent monoclinic crystalline substance that is commonly known as sugar of lead, plumbous acetate, or Goulard's powder. Lead acetate is used as a mordant in textile printing and dyeing, as a drier in paints and varnishes, and in preparing other lead compounds. It is made by treating litharge (lead monoxide, PbO) with acetic acid.
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