Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula NH3. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food stuffs and fertilizers.
 
PRODUCT DATA AND TYPICAL PROPERTIES
Formula : NH4OH Molecular weight : 35.05 pH (20°C, 1%w/w solution of ‘890’ grade) : 11.4 (typical) Completely miscible with water.
 
PRODUCT SPECIFICATION
Apperance clear colourless liquid Assay % as NH3 32.0 ± 0.5 Specific gravity (15.5°C) 0.8895 ± 0.0015 Chloride % as Cl- < 0.0005 Residue on evaporation % as Mass < 0.002 (at 105°C)
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula NH3. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to foodstuffsand fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or indirectly, is also a building block for the synthesis of many pharmaceuticals. Although in wide use, ammonia is both caustic and hazardous. In 2006, worldwide production was estimated at 146.5 million tons. It is used in commercial cleaning products.
 
Ammonia, as used commercially, is often called anhydrous ammonia. This term emphasizes the absence of water in the material. Because NH3 boils at −33.34 °C, the liquid must be stored under high pressure or at low temperature. Its heat of vapourization is, however, sufficiently high so that NH3 can be readily handled in ordinary beakers, in a fume hood. "Household ammonia" or "ammonium hydroxide" is a solution of NH3 in water. The strength of such solutions is measured in units of baume (density), with 26 degrees baume (about 30 weight percent ammonia at 15.5 °C) being the typical high concentration commercial product. Household ammonia ranges in concentration from 5 to 10 weight percent ammonia.
 
Uses
Fertilizer
Approximately 83% (as of 2003) of ammonia is used as fertilizers either as its salts or as solutions. Consuming more than 1% of all man-made power, the production of ammonia is a significant component of the world energy budget.
 
Precursor to nitrogenous compounds
Ammonia is directly or indirectly the precursor to most nitrogen-containing compounds. Virtually all synthetic nitrogen compounds are derived from ammonia. An important derivative is nitric acid. This key material is generated via the Ostwald process by oxidation of ammonia with air over a platinum catalyst at 700 - 850 °C, ~9 atm. Nitric oxide is an intermediate in this conversion:
NH3 + 2 O2 → HNO3 + H2O
Nitric acid is used for the production of fertilizers, explosives, and many organonitrogen compounds.
 
Cleaner
Household ammonia is a solution of NH3 in water (i.e., ammonium hydroxide) used as a general purpose cleaner for many surfaces. Because ammonia results in a relatively streak-free shine, one of its most common uses is to clean glass, porcelain and stainless steel. It is also frequently used for cleaning ovens and soaking items to loosen baked-on or caked-on grime. Household ammonia ranges in concentration from 5 to 10 weight percent ammonia.
 
Minor and emerging uses
Refrigeration - R717
Because of its favorable vaporization properties, ammonia is an attractive refrigerant. It was commonly used prior to the popularization ofchlorofluorocarbons (Freons). Anhydrous ammonia is widely used in industrial refrigeration applications because of its high energy efficiencyand low cost. Ammonia is used less frequently in commercial applications, such as in grocery store freezer cases and refrigerated displays due to its toxicity.
For remediation of gaseous emissions
Ammonia used to scrub SO2 from the burning of fossil fuels, the resulting product is converted to ammonium sulfate for use as fertilizer. Ammonia neutralizes the nitrogen oxides (NOx) pollutants emitted by diesel engines. This technology, called SCR (selective catalytic reduction), relies on a vanadia-based catalyst.
 
As a fuel
Ammonia was used during World War II to power buses in Belgium, and in engine and solar energy applications prior to 1900. Liquid ammonia was used as the fuel of the rocket airplane, the X-15. Although not as powerful as other fuels, it left no soot in the reusable rocket engine and its density approximately matches the density of the oxidizer, liquid oxygen, which simplified the aircraft's design.
Antimicrobial agent for food products
As early as in 1895 it was known that ammonia was "strongly antiseptic .. it requires 1.4 grams per litre to preserve beef tea."Anhydrous ammonia has been shown effective as an antimicrobial agent for animal feed and is currently used commercially to reduce or eliminatemicrobial contamination of beef.
As a vehicle fuel
Ammonia has been proposed as a practical alternative to fossil fuel for internal combustion engines. The calorific value of ammonia is 22.5 MJ/kg (9690 BTU/lb) which is about half that of diesel. In a normal engine, in which the water vapour is not condensed, the calorific value of ammonia will be about 21% less than this figure. It can be used in existing engines with only minor modifications to carburettors/injectors.
To meet these demands, significant capital would be required to increase present production levels. Although the second most produced chemical, the scale of ammonia production is a small fraction of world petroleum usage. It could be manufactured from renewable energy sources, as well as coal or nuclear power. It is however significantly less efficient than batteries. The 60 MW Rjukan dam in Telemark, Norway produced ammonia via electrolysis of water for many years from 1913 producing fertilizer for much of Europe. If produced from coal, the CO2 can be readily sequestrated. (the combustion products are nitrogen and water). In 1981 a Canadian company converted a 1981 Chevrolet Impala to operate using ammonia as fuel.
 
Textile
Liquid ammonia is used for treatment of cotton materials, give a properties like mercerisation using alkalies. And also used for pre-washing of wool.
 
Lifting gas
At standard temperature and pressure ammonia is lighter than air, and has approximately 60% of the lifting power of hydrogen or helium. Ammonia has sometimes been used to fill weather balloons as a lifting gas. Due to its relatively high boiling point (compared to helium and hydrogen), ammonia could potentially be refrigerated and liquefied aboard an airship to reduce lift and add ballast (and returned to a gas to add lift and reduce ballast).
***Uses Taken from Wikipedia – Please ensure correct use for you***