Nitrogen is a colorless, odorless gas with the chemical formula N₂, consisting of two nitrogen atoms held together by one of the strongest bonds in nature – a triple bond. Making up 78% of Earth’s atmosphere, nitrogen was first recognized as a distinct substance by Daniel Rutherford in 1772, though its role as an essential element for life wasn’t understood until much later. Despite surrounding us with every breath, nitrogen gas is remarkably unreactive due to its strong triple bond, requiring enormous energy or specialized bacteria to “fix” it into forms that plants can use. This dual nature – abundant yet inaccessible, life-giving yet potentially deadly when it displaces oxygen – makes nitrogen one of the most important industrial gases, crucial for producing fertilizers that feed half the world’s population, while also serving as an inert protector in food packaging, electronics manufacturing, and countless other applications.

Find a review of the 50 most important industrial gases here.

20 Fun Facts About Nitrogen

Beyond the basics above, what else should we know about Nitrogen? Check out the 20 fun facts below!

1. The nitrogen triple bond requires 945 kJ/mol to break – so strong that lightning is one of few natural forces capable of splitting it.
2. Liquid nitrogen at -196°C can freeze a rose solid in seconds, making it shatter like glass when dropped.
3. Your body contains about 1 kg of nitrogen, mostly in DNA and proteins, recycled through the complex nitrogen cycle.
4. The Haber-Bosch process for fixing nitrogen consumes 1-2% of world energy production to make ammonia for fertilizers.
5. Nitrogen narcosis affects divers below 30 meters, causing euphoria and poor judgment nicknamed “rapture of the deep.”
6. The gas makes up 98% of Titan’s atmosphere at 1.5 times Earth’s pressure, with methane comprising most of the remainder.
7. Azide compounds (N₃⁻) are so explosive that lead azide detonates from a falling feather’s touch.
8. Potato chip bags contain 70% nitrogen to prevent oxidation and provide cushioning during shipping.
9. The element forms more compounds than any other except carbon, despite N₂ gas being almost completely inert.
10. Nitrogen bubbles in blood cause “the bends” when divers ascend too quickly, potentially fatal without recompression.
11. Lightning produces 15 million tons of fixed nitrogen annually, providing natural fertilizer especially in tropical regions.
12. Liquid nitrogen boils so violently when spilled that it hovers on a cushion of gas, demonstrating the Leidenfrost effect.
13. The atmosphere contains 4 quadrillion tons of nitrogen, but most plants would die without nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
14. NASCAR uses nitrogen in tires because it expands more predictably than air when heated during racing.
15. Nitrous oxide (laughing gas) is 300 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than CO₂ and depletes ozone.
16. Explosives from TNT to nitroglycerin derive their power from nitrogen compounds decomposing to N₂ gas.
17. The element has exactly seven protons, seven neutrons, and seven electrons – considered mystically perfect by alchemists.
18. Coral reefs can detect 1 part per billion of dissolved nitrogen, with excess amounts causing devastating bleaching.
19. Viking 1 detected 2.7% nitrogen in Mars’s atmosphere, likely from ancient volcanic outgassing billions of years ago.
20. Guinness beer’s creamy head comes from nitrogen bubbles 100 times smaller than CO₂, creating the signature cascade.

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