[born2dive00]

Can some one explain to me in step by step detail what happens when Tri sodium citrate is added to water,

I know that citrate is (C6H5O7 which has a -3 charge)
I know that sodium is Na which has a +1 charge) and there are 3 sodium in TSC so the charge is Na+3 which binds to the citrate that has a -3 charge.
I also know that water has a 0 ion charge but a - polar charge.

Now I have been told that once in water TSC disassociates all the sodium.  So will the sodium just be floating be floating around in the water or will it create a "static electric" bond with the water?
Please clarify what exactly is happening here.

Now the next step is what happens when Phosphoric acid (H2PO4) when added to water. If I am not mistaken in water it forms 3(H3O-1) and PO4-3.

so does the free floating sodium bind with the PO4 to form Na3PO4 +/-0 , leaving citrate C6H5O7-3 (which is a chealting agent, free to sequester Iron and Copper)

How does adding the phosphoric acid affect the pKa of the TSC?

[chenbeier]

Check here for solvation


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solvation

[Vidya]

Now I have been told that once in water TSC disassociates all the sodium.  So will the sodium just be floating be floating around in the water or will it create a "static electric" bond with the water?
Please clarify what exactly is happening here.

sodium ions have positive charge on them and water is a polar solvent.Each Na+ ion gets surrounded(due to attraction) by oxygen of water and this process is called as solvation.

[Babcock_Hall]

₃

Now the next step is what happens when Phosphoric acid (H2PO4) when added to water. If I am not mistaken in water it forms 3(H3O-1) and PO4-3.

so does the free floating sodium bind with the PO4 to form Na3PO4 +/-0 , leaving citrate C6H5O7-3 (which is a chealting agent, free to sequester Iron and Copper)

How does adding the phosphoric acid affect the pKa of the TSC?

Phosphoric acid is H₃PO₄, with three very different dissociation constants (roughly 2, 7, and 12).  It cannot affect the pK_a of citric acid.  That does not imply however, that it has no effect whatsoever.