We here on Earth live at the bottom of an ocean of nitrogen. Nearly 80% of every breath we take is nitrogen, and the element is a vital component of the building blocks of life. Nitrogen is critical ...

Synthesizing ammonia, the key ingredient in fertilizer, is energy intensive and a significant contributor to greenhouse gas warming of the planet. Chemists designed and synthesized porous materials -- ...

The Haber–Bosch process for making ammonia has been world-changing, but is highly energy-intensive owing to the high temperatures and pressures involved. A detailed understanding of the catalytic ...

Ammonia -- a colorless gas essential for things like fertilizer -- can be made by a new process which is far cleaner, easier and cheaper than the current leading method. Researchers use readily ...

This story was originally published by WIRED and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Of all the elements that make up Earth's atmosphere, nitrogen is by far the most abundant ...

Humans weren’t the first organisms on this planet to figure out how to turn the abundance of nitrogen in the atmosphere into a chemically useful form; that honor goes to some microbes that learned how ...

1874: Carl Bosch, a chemist whose work would transform agriculture and industry -- and eventually enable the Green Revolution -- is born. Bosch's contribution to humanity was the development of the ...

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. The following is an excerpt from “Pandora’s Lab: Seven Stories ...