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NITROGEN

(L. nitrum, Gr. nitron, native soda; genes, forming)

N  at. wt. 14.0067
   at. no. 7
   m.p. -209.86°C
   b.p. - 195.8°C 
   density 1.2506 gm/l
   sp. gr. liquid 0.808 (- 195.8°C)
   sp. gr. solid 1.026 (-252°C)
   valence 3, or 5.
Electronic configuration
 SHELL  K L M N O P Q
 SUB  SHELL He Neon Argon Krypton Xenon Radon Eka-radon
1s 2s 2p 3s 3p 3d 4s 4p 4d 5s 5p 4f 5d 6s 6p 5f 6d 7s 7p
Nitrogen 1s22s22p3          
Symbol 4S3/2
Nitrogen was discovered by Daniel Rutherford in 1772, but Scheele, Cavendish, Priestley, and others about the same time studied "burnt or dephlogisticated air," as air without oxygen was then called. Nitrogen makes up 78 % of the air, by volume. The estimated amount of this element in the atmosphere is more than 4000 billion tons. From this inexhaustible source it can be obtained by liquefaction and fractional distillation. Nitrogen mole- cules give the orange-red, blue-green, blue-violet, and deep violet shades to the aurora. The element is so inert that I,,avoisier named it azote, meaning without life, yet its com- pounds are so active as to be most important in foods, poisons, fertilizers, and explosives. Nitrogen can be also easily prepared by heating a water solution of ammonium nitrite. Nitrogen, as a gas, is colorless, odorless, and a generally inert element.As a liqiuid it is also colorless and odorless, and is similar in appearance to water. Two 8110' tropic forms of solid nitrogen exist, with the transition from the a to the p form taking place at - 2370C. When nitrogen is heated, it combines directly with magnesium, lithium, or calcium; when mixed with oxygen and subjected to electric sparks, it forms first nitric oxide (NO) and then the dioxide (N02); when heated under pressure with a catalyst with hydrogen, ammonia is formed (Haber process). The an~- monia thus formed is of the utmost importance as i{)5 used in fertilizers, and it can be oxidized to nitric acid (Ostwald process). The ammonia industry is the largest consumer of rntrogen Large amounts of the gas are also used by the electronics industry, which uses the gas as a blanketing medium during production of such components as transis- tors, diodes, etc. The drug industry also uses large quantities. Nitrogen is used as a refrigerant both for the immersion freezing of food products and for transportation of foods. Liquid nitrogen is also used in missile work as a purge for components, insulators for space chambers, etc., and by the oil industry to build up great pressures in wells to force crude oil upward. Sodium and potassium nitrates are formed by the decomposition of organic matter with compounds of the metals present. In certain dry areas of the world these saltpeters are found in quantity. Ammonia, nitric acid, the nitrates, the five oxides (N20, NO, N203, N02, and N205), TNT, the cyanides, etc., are but a few of the important com- pounds. Nitrogen gas prices vary from 2t to $2.75 per 100 cu. ft., depending on purity, etc. Production of nitrogen in the U,S. is more than 40 billion cubic fret per year.

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