Just Add Water – Stanford Researchers Have Discovered a Simple and Eco-Friendly Way To Make Ammonia

 

    Recently, an article on SciTechDaily detailed how Stanford researchers found a possible solution to the current drawbacks in ammonia production. Ammonia, also known by it's chemical formula NH₃ , is an incredibly common molecule that is used in a variety of fields. It is mostly used, however, as the foundation for the vast majority of chemical fertilizers. For the last 100 years ammonia has been produced around the world via the Haber-Bosch process. It was due to this method that ammonia could be mass produced, aiding the booming agricultural industry as the human population skyrocketed. The method, however, is far from perfect. It must be performed at high temperatures and pressures, ranging between 572-1000 F and 80 - 300 atm, making it inherently dangerous and energy intensive.  Another large drawback from this reaction is that carbon dioxide is a major by-product, with 2 tons being emitted for every ton of NH₃ produced. It is currently responsible for  2% of global energy demand as well as 1% of global cardon dioxide emissions. While ammonia production is critical to feeding the world's growing population, it's current production methods come at a high cost.

    This makes the developments by Dr. Zare's lab all the more important. They published an article back in March detailing how they managed to create ammonia, at room temperature and pressure, using only nitrogen gas, water, and a graphite mesh coated with magnetite (Fe₃O₄) and Nafion. Water and nitrogen gas were sprayed through the mesh and instantly analyzed by MS. 

    The reaction utilizes the unique redox environment afforded by microdroplets of water, allowing the single electron reduction to occur. The microdroplets also serve to increase the amount of nitrogen molecules in contact with water molecules as the solubility of nitrogen is very low, only 20 mg/L at room temperature and pressure. As nitrogen and water are two of the most abundant resources on earth, this reaction, if scalable, promises to make ammonia production much more green.

References

Collins, C. (2023, April 29). Just add water – Stanford researchers have discovered a simple and Eco-friendly way to make ammonia. Retrieved May 1, 2023, from SciTechDaily website: https://scitechdaily.com/just-add-water-stanford-researchers-have-discovered-a-simple-and-eco-friendly-way-to-make-ammonia/

Song, X., Basheer, C., & Zare, R. N. (2023). Making ammonia from nitrogen and water microdroplets. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 120(16), e2301206120. doi:10.1073/pnas.2301206120