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Periodic Table of Elements

Element Nitrogen - N

Comprehensive data on the chemical element Nitrogen is provided on this page; including scores of properties, element names in many languages, most known nuclides of Nitrogen. Common chemical compounds are also provided for many elements. In addition technical terms are linked to their definitions and the menu contains links to related articles that are a great aid in one's studies.

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Overview of Nitrogen

Nitrogen's Name in Other Languages

  • Latin: Nitrogenium
  • Czech: Dusík
  • Croatian: Dušik
  • French: Azote
  • German: Stickstoff - r
  • Italian: Azoto
  • Norwegian: Nitrogen
  • Portuguese: Nitrogênio
  • Russian: Азот
  • Spanish: Nitrógeno
  • Swedish: Kväve

Atomic Structure of Nitrogen

Chemical Properties of Nitrogen

Physical Properties of Nitrogen

Regulatory / Health

  • CAS Number
    • 7727-37-9
  • OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL)
    • No limits set by OSHA
  • OSHA PEL Vacated 1989
    • No limits set by OSHA
  • NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit (REL)
    • No limits set by NIOSH
  • Levels In Humans:
    Note: this data represents naturally occuring levels of elements in the typical human, it DOES NOT represent recommended daily allowances.
    • Blood/mg dm-3: 34300
    • Bone/p.p.m: 43000
    • Liver/p.p.m: 72000
    • Muscle/p.p.m: 72000
    • Daily Dietary Intake: n/a
    • Total Mass In Avg. 70kg human: 1.8 kg
  • Discovery Year: 1772
  • Name Origin:
    Greek: zôê (vie).
  • Abundance of Nitrogen:
    • Earth's Crust/p.p.m.: 25
    • Seawater/p.p.m.:
      • Atlantic Suface: 0.00008
      • Atlantic Deep: 0.27
      • Pacific Surface: 0.00008
      • Pacific Deep: 0.54
    • Atmosphere/p.p.m.: 780900
    • Sun (Relative to H=1E12): 8.71E+07
  • Sources of Nitrogen:
    Nitrogen can be made by liquification and then fractional distillation of the air. It is very easily done commercially. It can also be made by heating NaN3 to 300 degrees C. Annual world wide production is around 44,000,000 tons.
  • Uses of Nitrogen:
    Nitrogen has many industrial uses in the gaseous forms, but probably the most interesting is liquid nitrogen, which is extremely cold. Items that must be frozen to extremely low temperatures for preservation are frequently stored in liquid nitrogen. Fertility clinics store sperm, eggs and embryos used to help infertile couples become pregnant in ampoules in liquid nitrogen.Since nitrogen gas is very stable, at standard temperature and pressure, it is used as the air in inert welding atmospheres. Documents, foods and chemicals are sometimes stored in nitrogen to keep them from oxidizing or reacting with air or water.
  • Additional Notes:

    Nitrogen in the elemental form was considered to be inert and was even named ozote which refers to the fact that it is not reactive. Of course nitrogen does form compounds, but the gaseous form consists of diamers (2 nitrogens bonded together). The diamer is very stable.

    Nitrogen is a major element in organic compounds, especially proteins. Some nitrogen compounds are highly reactive. Trinitrotoluene is TNT or dynamite. Ammonium Nitrate is a fertilizer, but was used as the major explosive ingredient in the Oklahoma City bombing. Anfo, or Ammonium Nitrate and fuel oil mixture is the primary explosive used in the mining industry because it is inexpensive, easy to manufacture and can be easily manufactured near the mine site thus reducing the risks and expenses related to the transportation of explosives. Nitrates, Nitrites and Azides (all nitrogen compounds are either oxidizers or reactives and will react violently under the right conditions.

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References

A list of reference sources used to compile the data provided on our periodic table of elements can be found on the main periodic table page.

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