Question

10) The Haber-Bosch Process for nitrogen fixation is needed to make fertilizers such as ammonia (NH3): N2 (g) + 3 H2 (g) → 2 NH3 (g) The above reaction produces about 1.75 × 1014 g of ammonia each year, and is responsible for ~1–2% of the world’s energy consumption! This reaction is not very efficient however. Typically it only results in about 87% yield. How many grams of ammonia are NOT formed every year due to the inefficiency of this process?

Answer 1

The reaction that produces ammonia is

Actual yield = Amount of ammonia produced each year is .

It is given that the reaction has an yield of about 87%.

We know that % yield is defined as the ratio of actual yield and theoretical yield times 100.

Hence, if the process was 100% efficient, the amount of ammonia produced would have been

Hence, the amount of ammonia not produced due to inefficiency of the process is

Hence, approximately of ammonia is not produced each year due to inefficiency of the process.