The Biosphere Blog - Latest Comments on Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) https://jujubetrees.com.au/the-biosphere-blog/?disp=comments en-AU http://backend.userland.com/rss 60 kristi [Member] in response to: Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) Fri, 07 Feb 2020 09:15:04 +0000 [Member] c16@https://jujubetrees.com.au/ <p>Hi Adrian,</p> <p>Your shed (and you!) were probably quite safe - ammonium nitrate is actually very stable and needs to be heated to at least 170C before decomposing to those dangerous gases. More extreme situations again are required for it to actually explode:<br /> <a href="https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/injury-prevention-safety/hazardous-chemicals/specific-hazardous-chemicals/ammonium-nitrate" class="linebreak" rel="nofollow ugc">https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/injury-prevention-safety/hazardous-chemicals/specific-hazardous-chemicals/ammonium-nitrate</a></p> <p>It&#8217;s still an effective and cheap fertiliser in agriculture, and it&#8217;s only because of certain types that you can&#8217;t get your 50kg bags anymore for home use.</p> <p>Nitrogen-rich compounds are go-tos for explosives as the nitrogen bonds in those chemicals are unstable - all the nitrogen wants to do is form triple-bond nitrogen gas, and when given the means will do so, releasing plenty of energy.<br /> This page is a good read:<br /> <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn23399-texas-disaster-what-links-fertilisers-and-explosions/" class="linebreak" rel="nofollow ugc">https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn23399-texas-disaster-what-links-fertilisers-and-explosions/</a></p> <p>Here&#8217;s an insanely mega-nitrogen-rich compound for whom being on the other side of the planet isn&#8217;t far enough to be away from!<br /> <a href="https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2013/01/09/things_i_wont_work_with_azidoazide_azides_more_or_less" class="linebreak" rel="nofollow ugc">https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2013/01/09/things_i_wont_work_with_azidoazide_azides_more_or_less</a></p> Hi Adrian,

Your shed (and you!) were probably quite safe - ammonium nitrate is actually very stable and needs to be heated to at least 170C before decomposing to those dangerous gases. More extreme situations again are required for it to actually explode:
https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/injury-prevention-safety/hazardous-chemicals/specific-hazardous-chemicals/ammonium-nitrate

It’s still an effective and cheap fertiliser in agriculture, and it’s only because of certain types that you can’t get your 50kg bags anymore for home use.

Nitrogen-rich compounds are go-tos for explosives as the nitrogen bonds in those chemicals are unstable - all the nitrogen wants to do is form triple-bond nitrogen gas, and when given the means will do so, releasing plenty of energy.
This page is a good read:
https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn23399-texas-disaster-what-links-fertilisers-and-explosions/

Here’s an insanely mega-nitrogen-rich compound for whom being on the other side of the planet isn’t far enough to be away from!
https://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2013/01/09/things_i_wont_work_with_azidoazide_azides_more_or_less

]]> https://jujubetrees.com.au/the-biosphere-blog/nitrogen-essential-macronutrient#c16 Adrian van Leest [Visitor] in response to: Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) Fri, 07 Feb 2020 05:48:04 +0000 Adrian van Leest [Visitor] c15@https://jujubetrees.com.au/ <p>Kristi, you noted that nitrogen is only available to plants as ammonium ions (NH4+) or nitrate ions (NO3-). In the 1980s my favourite fertilizer was in fact ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) which I bought in 50kg bags to fertilize my lawn and add nitrogen to the vegie patch. Now I know why it was so effective if used in moderation. Both ions of this so-called fertilizer effectively provided the garden with ample nitrogen. Unfortunately it is also an explosive and for that reason is not sold in garden centers anymore. Apparently its decomposition can create toxic gases containing ammonia and nitrogen oxides. And as the temperature rises, the rate of decomposition increases. In a confined space, the pressure can reach dangerous levels and cause an explosion that will involve the detonation of the ammonium nitrate. You can imagine what a 50kg bag of the stuff could have led to – no garden shed and no Adrian.</p> Kristi, you noted that nitrogen is only available to plants as ammonium ions (NH4+) or nitrate ions (NO3-). In the 1980s my favourite fertilizer was in fact ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) which I bought in 50kg bags to fertilize my lawn and add nitrogen to the vegie patch. Now I know why it was so effective if used in moderation. Both ions of this so-called fertilizer effectively provided the garden with ample nitrogen. Unfortunately it is also an explosive and for that reason is not sold in garden centers anymore. Apparently its decomposition can create toxic gases containing ammonia and nitrogen oxides. And as the temperature rises, the rate of decomposition increases. In a confined space, the pressure can reach dangerous levels and cause an explosion that will involve the detonation of the ammonium nitrate. You can imagine what a 50kg bag of the stuff could have led to – no garden shed and no Adrian.

]]> https://jujubetrees.com.au/the-biosphere-blog/nitrogen-essential-macronutrient#c15 kristi [Member] in response to: Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) Tue, 28 Jan 2020 07:03:56 +0000 [Member] c14@https://jujubetrees.com.au/ <p>Thank you kindly airlie! But if you don&#8217;t understand all the &#8216;technical stuff&#8217; then I&#8217;m obviously not doing a good job! What do I need to explain better please?<br /> I certainly have discovered how hard it really is to write about science - I aim for somewhere a little more &#8216;deep&#8217; and informative than the mass, popular stuff out there that doesn&#8217;t really go into enough detail to be meaningful, but at the same time have to be really mindful of not confusing an audience. Which I am sure I&#8217;m doing. (Confusing people, that is.)<br /> But the only way around this I think is to literally write an introductory text-book to get everyone up to speed, but then all the plant and jujube-specific stuff would never get written&#8230;<br /> What to do?!</p> Thank you kindly airlie! But if you don’t understand all the ‘technical stuff’ then I’m obviously not doing a good job! What do I need to explain better please?
I certainly have discovered how hard it really is to write about science - I aim for somewhere a little more ‘deep’ and informative than the mass, popular stuff out there that doesn’t really go into enough detail to be meaningful, but at the same time have to be really mindful of not confusing an audience. Which I am sure I’m doing. (Confusing people, that is.)
But the only way around this I think is to literally write an introductory text-book to get everyone up to speed, but then all the plant and jujube-specific stuff would never get written…
What to do?!

]]> https://jujubetrees.com.au/the-biosphere-blog/nitrogen-essential-macronutrient#c14 kristi [Member] in response to: Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) Tue, 28 Jan 2020 06:47:58 +0000 [Member] c13@https://jujubetrees.com.au/ <p>Thanks heaps jabuticaba, I really appreciate your words and that you found it interesting. Are your kids young or old if I may ask? Sometimes an interest is latent and appears much later in life - they may well have your plant-loving genes but don&#8217;t know it yet!<br /> This was certainly the case with me with strong plant-lovers on both sides yet I wasn&#8217;t interested much in plants until my late 20s. Then bang I got the bug like crazy! As in can&#8217;t-collect-enough crazy.<br /> I had always wanted to be a virologist since the age of nine (!), or so I thought, as I somehow ended up in soil microbiology (!!) and biochemistry - maybe those latent genes were trying to express themselves even then.<br /> But anyway, if your kids see you around and working with plants a lot, some of that just has to rub off, and maybe in ways no-one expects. If nothing else they will always appreciate the exposure, I am absolutely sure of that.</p> Thanks heaps jabuticaba, I really appreciate your words and that you found it interesting. Are your kids young or old if I may ask? Sometimes an interest is latent and appears much later in life - they may well have your plant-loving genes but don’t know it yet!
This was certainly the case with me with strong plant-lovers on both sides yet I wasn’t interested much in plants until my late 20s. Then bang I got the bug like crazy! As in can’t-collect-enough crazy.
I had always wanted to be a virologist since the age of nine (!), or so I thought, as I somehow ended up in soil microbiology (!!) and biochemistry - maybe those latent genes were trying to express themselves even then.
But anyway, if your kids see you around and working with plants a lot, some of that just has to rub off, and maybe in ways no-one expects. If nothing else they will always appreciate the exposure, I am absolutely sure of that.

]]> https://jujubetrees.com.au/the-biosphere-blog/nitrogen-essential-macronutrient#c13 jabuticaba [Member] in response to: Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) Tue, 28 Jan 2020 05:28:34 +0000 [Member] c12@https://jujubetrees.com.au/ <p>Hi Kristi,</p> <p>This is very impressive, thank you very much for the detailed explanation, we really appreciate it, I hope my kids have a high interest as you do with plants &amp; plant science.</p> Hi Kristi,

This is very impressive, thank you very much for the detailed explanation, we really appreciate it, I hope my kids have a high interest as you do with plants & plant science.

]]> https://jujubetrees.com.au/the-biosphere-blog/nitrogen-essential-macronutrient#c12 airlie [Visitor] in response to: Essential Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N) Tue, 28 Jan 2020 04:51:13 +0000 airlie [Visitor] c11@https://jujubetrees.com.au/ <p>Despite not understanding all the technical stuff covered here, this is an excellent report and would be one of the best, if not the best, to date.<br /> Well done!</p> Despite not understanding all the technical stuff covered here, this is an excellent report and would be one of the best, if not the best, to date.
Well done!

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