Essay Sample on Synthesizing Ammonia: Benefits and Risks

Introduction

Haber claims that the principal motive for synthesizing ammonia from its elements was to increasing demand for food and the related requirements to replace the lost nitrogen from the fields to the harvesting of yields. What Haber did not foretell, nonetheless, was negative impact the mass production of ammonia on the environment, such as increased air and water pollution, the loss of biodiversity, and the perturbation of greenhouse-gas levels. The negative outcome of the process has raised a question regarding the authenticity of his Noble Prize.

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Comparison Between the Positive and Negative Effect of the Haber Process

According to Tripathi (2014), about 80% of the nitrogen produced by the Haber-Bosch process is utilized in the production of agricultural fertilizers. Nonetheless, a big ration of this nitrogen is lost to the surroundings. Nitrogenous compounds such as nitric and ammonia acid are pollutants to groundwater and soil. Haber process needs a high-energy input that is mainly provided by the burning of fossil fuels creating greenhouse gas emissions. The ammonia generated by the process is used to make synthetic fertilizers. Nitrates from these synthetic fertilizers pollute drinking water, and they can bio accumulate in food chains to a toxic level, thus can harm plants and animals mainly when runoff occurs. Besides, ammonia can lead to health complications such as lung problems and irritating eyes. The benefits of the process outdo its advantages.

The Controversy that followed the awarding of the Nobel Prize of Haber Proces On the industrial scale, the Haber process has enabled the production of agricultural fertilizes, radically increasing global agrarian productivity in most parts of the world. The approximated number of humans supported per hectare of arable land has elevated from 1.9 to 4.3 individuals from 1908 to 2008 (Erisman, Sutton, Galloway, Klimont, & Winiwarter, 2008). This increment is possible because of Haber-Bosch nitrogen.

Besides, Haber process has considerably lower energy needed and thus significantly cheaper, enabling it to form the basis of an alternative expanding supply of reactive nitrogen. Hence, the process has boosted the many previously costly or rare compounds.

The Nobel Prize is often given to an individual deemed to have made an exclusive contribution to humanity. Haber, on this light in 1981, was awarded Noble Prize for his contribution to ammonia synthesis (Tripathi, 2014). However, the unintended consequences of ammonia synthesis on the environment and society raised questions of the authenticity of the reward. Usage of synthesis fertilizers raises ethical issues regarding the effects of scientists and their work on lives and the environment. The usage of ammonia is linked to loss of biodiversity, air pollution, and severe health complication.

Why Haber Derserved the Nobel Prize

However, since the benefits of the Haber process outdo the negative consequences of the process and since ammonia can be used, responsibly majority of its shortcomings can be prevented, makes Haber deserve the ward.

References

Erisman, J. W., Sutton, M. A., Galloway, J., Klimont, Z., & Winiwarter, W. (2008). How a century of ammonia synthesis changed the world. Nature Geoscience, 1(10), 636. Retrieved from: /how_amonia_synthesis_change_world.pdf

Tripathi, S. K. (2014). Perturbations in Global Nitrogen Cycle-Causes and Consequences: A Review. International Journal of Environmental Sciences, 3(1), 5-10. Retrieved from: http://www.crdeepjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Vol-3-1-2-IJES.pdf