# Nitrogen gas

Inert nitrogen from air protects chemicals, food, chips and oil wells from oxygen, and every tonne of ammonia locks in 0.82 t of it.

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/

Commodity chemicals · Industrial gases · No. 15

- Single chemical
- Feedstock: Air
- not published for industrial (inert) nitrogen; about 157 Mt a year of N2 is fixed into ammonia (2024)
- 0.1 t CO₂e per t
- HS 280430
 Commodity chemicals · Industrial gases · Foundation · Matter

The gas that makes up 78% of every breath is prized for doing nothing, protecting chips, food and fuel tanks.

Chart: Illustration: Nitrogen gas

##### Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Nitrogen is pulled from air by cryogenic distillation, or on site by PSA sieves and membranes that give 95-99.999% purity.

##### Three things to know

1. About 157 Mt of nitrogen a year is fixed into ammonia, far more than all its uses as an inert gas.
2. Chip fabs need nitrogen with parts-per-billion impurities, while oil fields and food packers can use 95-99.5% purity.
3. Asphyxiation in confined spaces is the main way nitrogen kills, because the gas gives no warning.

##### The journey

1. 1 **Air compression**About 1.3 t air per tonne
2. 2 **Separation**Cryogenic columns, PSA sieves or membranes
3. 3 **On-site supply**Piped to chemical plants and fabs
4. 4 **Liquid nitrogen**Trucked at -196 C for freezing
5. 5 **Cylinders**Small users supplied by distributors
 Covered in [The chemical industry: what it makes and how it is organisedChemicals](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/chemicals/chem-industry-map/)[How a chemical process works: reactions, separations, catalysts and flowsheetsChemicals](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/chemicals/how-chemical-processes-work/)[Heavy inorganics: salt, sulphur, nitrogen and phosphorusChemicals](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/chemicals/heavy-inorganic-chemicals/)

##### Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full

## Other sections

- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/correlation/index.md)
- [Production route](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/routes/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/production/index.md)
- [Feedstocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/feedstocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/movement/index.md)
- [Regulation](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/regulation/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/chemicals/nitrogen_gas/links/index.md)