When determining the presence of inorganic constituents such as sulfates, phosphates, and chlorides, you will be looking for the "formation of a precipitate." what is a precipitate?

A precipitate is a solid that is formed as a result of a chemical reaction.

For example, if you combine 2 liquids and get a solid in the resulting solution, the solid is your precipitate.

An example of a reaction could be:

2AgNO3 + ZnCl2 - > 2AgCl (s) + Zn (NO3) 2

AgCl is a common precipitate in reactions - it is found as a solid.