Some Things to Know About Nitrogen

Plants cannot survive without nitrogen (N). Healthy plants contain up to 5% of this vital nutrient and the Earth’s atmosphere is about 78% N…it is all around us. There are approximately 75 million lb of N in the atmosphere above each acre. Huge amounts of N are also present in soils, water bodies, and fossil fuels.

But although N is in abundant supply, it must be converted to a different form before plants can use it. Some natural conversion of N does occur…by lightning, fires, and biological processes…in the soil and atmosphere.

For many years, N was supplied to crops primarily through organic materials which contain the nutrient…such as manure…and through crop rotation with N-fixing legumes. However, during the latter part of the 19^th century, with rapidly expanding world population, the need for commercial N became apparent. Thus, the N fertilizer industry emerged and is essential to world food production.

Anhydrous ammonia - synthesized using the Haber-Bosch process - is the source of nearly all the N fertilizer produced in the world and natural gas is the feedstock by which it is produced. The cost of natural gas accounts for 70 to 90% of the production cost of ammonia.

Agricultural use of N fertilizers accounts for about 80% of total production of industrially-fixed N. There are many other uses, including fibers, plastics, flame retardants, resins, and household cleaners.

Nitrogen is an essential part of proteins. This relationship is so important that a discussion of N metabolism in humans, animals, and plants must include proteins. Proteins are chemical compounds with the same components as carbohydrates and lipids…carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen…but proteins also contain N.

For economic, environmental, and other reasons, there is increasing emphasis on efficient use of N fertilizers.