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To: YlangYlangBreeze who wrote (3932)	2/9/2001 12:01:40 PM
From: cosmicforce	Respond to of 6089

Production of fixed nitrogen could certainly be one of those processes done by use of direct solar power. Introduction to Haber Process Ammonia is a colorless alkaline gas with formula NH3 made up of one part nitrogen and three parts hydrogen. It is lighter than air and has a sharp, stinging odor. Ammonia can be inhaled safely if it is greatly diluted in air, but concentrated ammonia gas can cause suffocation and death. Ammonia does not burn in air, but it burns in oxygen with a weak yellow flame. Ammonia gas changes to a liquid at -33.35 degrees C. Liquid ammonia boils at the same temperature. It freezes to a clear solid at -77.7 degrees C. In going from a liquid back to a gas, ammonia absorbs a large amount of heat from its surroundings. Upon evaporation, one gram of ammonia absorbs 327 calories of heat. For this reason, ammonia is widely used in refrigeration equipment. Ammonia is widely used as a fertilizer. Ammonium nitrate and other ammonium salts help to increase crop production because they have a high percentage of nitrogen. In some farming areas, anhydrous ammonia is now applied directly to the fields from large tanks that contain the compressed gas. Large quantities of ammonia are oxidized to make nitric acid, which is needed to make such explosives as TNT (trinitrotoluene), nitroglycerin, and ammonium nitrate. The textile industry uses ammonia in the production of synthetic fibers such as nylon and cuprammonium rayon. Ammonia is also used in dyeing and scouring cotton, wool, and other fibers. Ammonia water sometimes serves as a cleaning fluid and can be used to restore fabrics that have been stained by acids. Ammonia is also vital in the manufacture of many chemicals, plastics, vitamins, and drugs. For example, it acts as a catalyst in making plastics such as Bakelite, and it is used as a reactant in making melamine resins for plastics. During the first decade of the twentieth century, the world-wide demand for nitrogen based fertilizers exceeded the existing supply. The largest source of the chemicals necessary for fertilizer production was found in a huge guano deposit (essentially sea bird droppings) that was 220 miles in length and five feet thick, located along the coast of Chile. Scientists had long desired to solve the problem of the world's dependence on this fast disappearing natural source of ammonia and nitrogenous compounds. It was Haber, along with Carl Bosch, who finally solved this problem. Haber invented a large-scale catalytic synthesis of ammonia from elemental hydrogen and nitrogen gas, reactants which are abundant and inexpensive. By using high temperature (around 500oCelsius), high pressure (approximately 3000 psi), and an iron catalyst, Haber could force relatively unreactive gaseous nitrogen and hydrogen to combine into ammonia. This furnished the essential precursor for many important substances, particularly fertilizers and explosives used in mining and warfare. The resulting process was termed the Haber-Bosch process. It was first demonstrated in 1909 and patented by the patent owner Fritz Haber in 1910.