The Haber Process

1 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

2 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012
What is ammonia?
Ammonia is an important compound
in the manufacture of fertilizer and
other chemicals such as cleaning
fluids and floor waxes.
It is made industrially by reacting
nitrogen with hydrogen in the Haber
process. The Haber process is a
reversible reaction, so it never ends.
Why is this a problem for companies
making ammonia?

nitrogen + hydrogen ammonia

N2 (g) + 3H2 (g) 2NH3 (g)

3 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Feedstock
The nitrogen gas needed for the Haber
process comes from the air.

The air is 78% nitrogen. Nitrogen can be

separated out by fractional distillation.

The hydrogen gas needed for

the Haber process comes from
methane (from natural gas).

It is reacted with steam to

form hydrogen.

CH4(g) + H2O(g)  CO(g) + 3H2(g)

4 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

The Haber process

5 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

What is yield?
The amount of product made in a reaction is called the
yield and is usually expressed as a percentage.

The yield of ammonia produced by the Haber process

depends on the temperature and pressure of the reaction.
ammonia yield (%)

pressure (atm)
6 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012
What is the Haber compromise?
The highest yield of ammonia
is theoretically produced by
using a low temperature and
a high pressure.
In practice, these conditions
are not used. Why?
Lowering the temperature slows down the rate of reaction.
This means it takes longer for ammonia to be produced.
Increasing the pressure means stronger, more expensive
equipment is needed. This increases the cost of producing
the ammonia.
A compromise is used to make an acceptable yield in a
reasonable timeframe while keeping costs down.

7 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Temperature, pressure and yield

8 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Changing the yield of ammonia

9 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

The Haber compromise
To produce a high yield of ammonia, but with a fast rate
of reaction and without the need for overly expensive
equipment, the Haber process is carried out at 450 °C
and 200 atmospheres.

The most important factor in

deciding what conditions to use is
therefore not yield, but total cost.

What costs are involved

in the industrial
production of ammonia?
 raw materials  energy
 equipment  wages.

10 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Maximizing productivity
What else can be done to maximize productivity in the
manufacture of ammonia?
 An iron catalyst is used to increase the rate of
reaction. It speeds up both the forward and backward
reactions, so the position of equilibrium is not affected.
 The ammonia is cooled, liquefied and then removed
as it is produced. This causes the equilibrium to shift to
the right to produce more ammonia.
 Unreacted nitrogen and hydrogen are recycled and
given another chance to react.
 Gases flow through the reactor too quickly for
equilibrium to be reached.

11 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Temperature, pressure and yield

12 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Stages of the Haber process

13 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

14 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012
Environmental impact
Large industrial plants producing ammonia and its
feedstocks consume large amounts of power. This is
normally obtained from burning fossil fuels, which releases
carbon dioxide and contributes to global warming.

A large chemical
plant can also affect
the environment in
other ways.

Local residents may

experience noise, light
and sound pollution
from the plant.

15 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

How do fertilizers work?
One of the main uses of ammonia is the production
of fertilizers.
Fertilizers increase crop yield by
replacing the nutrients used up by
previous crops on an area of land.
This allows crops to be grown on
the same land year after year.
Plants absorb nutrients through
their roots. Fertilizers must be
dissolved in water before they
can be absorbed by plants.
Adding fertilizer to water systems
can cause environmental problems.

16 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Eutrophication

17 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Eutrophication: summary

18 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Reasons for using fertilizers
Artificial nitrogen-based
fertilizers are important, as
they increase yield and
allow land to be farmed
more intensively.

Using fertilizers can also

allow crops to be grown
on poor quality soils.

This increases the amount of crops that can be grown.

It is estimated that around one-third of the world’s

population is sustained by the use of artificial fertilizers.

19 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Evaluating artificial fertilizers

20 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

21 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012
How are nitrates produced?
Nitrates are important because they are a form of nitrogen that
plants can absorb. Nitrogen is used by plants to make protein
and is passed from plants to animals along food chains.

What processes add nitrates to the soil?

 Decomposers release ammonium

compounds from waste (such as
urea in urine) and dead matter.
Nitrifying bacteria then convert the
ammonium compounds into nitrates.

 Some nitrogen compounds form during lightning

strikes and are washed into the soil by rain water.

22 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Can plants add nitrogen to the soil?
This rugged landscape is
in Iceland. Deforestation by the
original settlers and high levels
of volcanic activity have left
much of the country as bare
lava or sand – an environment
in which few plants grow.

In the 1960s, Iceland began to

manage its soil. It decided to
drop millions of lupin seeds
from the air.

Why might lupins survive where nothing else grows?

23 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

What are legumes?
Most plants need nitrates from the soil because the nitrogen
in air is too unreactive. These plants rely on the presence of
nitrifying bacteria in the soil or artificial fertilizers.

By contrast, lupins and other

legumes, such as clover
and peas, are self-sufficient
in nitrates.

Nitrogen-fixing bacteria living

in the root nodules of legumes
convert nitrogen gas into
nitrates, improving the fertility
of poor-quality soils.

24 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Enzymes
Nitrogen-fixing bacteria use nitrogenase enzymes to
produce nitrates from the nitrogen in the air.

N2 + 8H+ + 8e–  2NH3 + H2

Why would scientists be interested in producing new

catalysts that mimic these natural enzymes?
 Nitrates could be produced without the high energy
requirements of the Haber process.
 The starting materials would come from the
air and not from non-renewable fossil fuels.
 The reaction goes to completion.

25 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Comparing nitrogen fixation methods

26 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

27 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012
Glossary

28 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Anagrams

29 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012

Multiple-choice quiz

30 of 30 © Boardworks Ltd 2012