| Nitrogen - N
CAS: 7727-37-9 Description: Colorless, odorless, tasteless gas Classification:Non-metal Date of Discovery: 1772 Discoverer: Daniel Rutherford Name Origin: Greek nitron, "native soda"; genes, "forming" |
|
|
Atomic Number: 7
Number of Neutrons: 7 Atomic Mass: 14.00674(7) amu Melting Point: -210.00 °C Boiling Point: -195.8 °C Density (293 K): 1.2506 g/cm3 liquid 0.808 g/cm3 @ -195.8 °C solid 1.026 g/cm3 @ -252 °C Atomic volume: 17.3 cm3/mol Electrical resistivity: Thermal conductivity: 0.0002598 W/cmK Enthalpy of atomization: 472.79 kJ/mol Enthalpy of vaporization: 2.7928 kJ/mol Enthalpy of fusion: 0.3604 kJ/mol Specific heat capacity: 1.04 J/gK |
Energy levels: 2-5
Electron configuration: [He]2s22p3 Crystal Structure: Hexagonal Atomic radius: 0.75 Å Covalent radius: 0.75 Å Oxidation States: -3, -2, -1, +1, +2, +3, +4, +5 (primarily +3 and +5) Electronegativity, Pauling: 3.04 Electron affinity: not stable First ionization energy: 14.534 eV 2nd ionization energy: 29.601 eV 3rd ionization energy: 47.448 eV Polarizability: 1.10 10-24cm3 |
| Isotope | Natural Abundance | Atomic Mass | Half-life | Decay Mode | Spin |
| 12N | 12.018613 | 11.0 ms |  +, +  |
1+ | |
| 13N | 13.0057386 | 9.97 m | - |
1/2- | |
| 14N | 99.634(9) | 14.00307401 | Stable | 1+ | |
| 15N | 0.366(9) | 15.0001090 | Stable | 1/2- | |
| 16N | 16.006100 | 7.13 s | -; -, |
2- | |
| 17N | 17.00845 | 4.17 sec | -, - n; - - |
1/2- | |
| 18N | 18.01408 | 0.62 s | - |
1- | |
| 19N | 19.01703 | 0.32 s | - |
||
| 20N | 20.02337 | 0.14 s | - |
||
| 21N | 21.0271 | 0.08 s | |||
| 22N | 22.0344 | 0.02 s | |||
| 23N | 23.0405 | ||||
|
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 atmosphere of Mars, by comparison, is 2.6% nitrogen. The estimated amount of this element in our atmosphere is more than 4000 trillion tons. From this inexhaustible source it can be obtained by liquefaction and fractional distillation. Nitrogen molecules give the orange-red, blue-green, blue-violet, and deep violet shades to the aurora. The element is so inert that Lavoisier named it azote, meaning without life, yet its compounds 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 liquid it is also colorless and odorless, and is similar in appearance to water. Two allotropic forms of solid nitrogen exist, with the transition from the alpha to the beta form taking place at -237 ° C. 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 (NO2); when heated under pressure with a catalyst with hydrogen, ammonia (NH3) is formed (Haber process). The ammonia thus formed is of the utmost importance as it is used in fertilizers, and it can be oxidized to nitric acid (Ostwald process). The ammonia industry is the largest consumer of nitrogen. Large amounts of gas are also used by the electronics industry, which uses the gas as a blanketing medium during production of such components as transistors, diodes, etc. Large quantities of nitrogen are used in annealing, stainless steel and other steel mill products. 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 (N2O, NO, N2O3, NO2, and N2O2), TNT, the cyanides, etc. are but a few of the important compounds. Natural nitrogen contains two isotopes, 14N and 15N. Ten other isotopes are known.
LINKS: Adding Nitrous Oxide to your car Chemical of the Week -- Ammonia The Effect of Liquid Nitrogen on a Rose Effects of Gas Pressure at Depth: Nitrogen Narcosis Lost in the crowd: the story of nitric oxide Nitrogen Chemistry in the Interstellar Medium The Nitrogen Cycle Nitrogen mineralization Nitrogen Metabolism and the Urea Cycle Nitrogen Oxides Nitrogen and Plant Physiology OSHA Chemical Sampling Information - Nitric Acid Student Nitric Oxide Explorer Homepage Water for Deserts - The Solar Fridge Return
Sources for the information on this website include: Lide, David R., ed. CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 78th Ed., 1997-1998. |
|||||