What is ammonia used for and why?

Answer 1

ammonia has a number of uses from use in hair products (in dyeing hair), to manufacture and use as a fertilizer. It is also a weak alkali and so can be used to neutralize acids. It can be used to kill bacteria as well. But its main use is in the manufacture of nitric acid.

Answer 2

A great asset in the production of ammonia is a catalyst which speeds the reaction between nitrogen and hydrogen. Early in this century, a German academic chemist, Fritz Haber, and an industrial colleague, Carl Bosch, found that a mixture of Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 catalyzes this reaction at temperatures in the range of 400°C to 600°C. The yield of ammonia was further enhanced by working at gas pressures between 200 and 400 atmospheres. In the balanced equation for the reaction, the number of moles of product (2 NH3) is less than the total number of moles of reactants (N2 + 3 H2). Therefore, high pressures drive the reaction forward, decreasing the number of moles of gas in the mixture. Although now modified and improved, the Haber-Bosch process continues to be the most common method for making ammonia. The nitrogen is obtained from liquefied air, and the hydrogen is usually from natural gas decomposed by heating.


The Haber-Bosch process is also an example of the complex impact of chemistry upon life. At the start of World War I, Germany was dependent upon the natural nitrate deposits of Chile for the nitrogen compounds required to manufacture explosives. The Allied blockade of South American ports soon cut off this supply. Had it not been for the alternative source of nitrogen compounds provided by the direct synthesis of ammonia, Germany most likely would have been forced to surrender several years before 1918. By prolonging the war, the Haber-Bosch process indirectly cost thousands of lives. However, over the years, the fertilizer produced by the same process has increased crop yields around the globe and spared millions from starvation.

Answer 3

Often used as a fertiliser due to it's high nitrogen content.

Answer 4

bleaching, because it is a good cleansing agent