Etymology : French nitrogène, from nitre niter + -gène -gen
Pronunciation : 'nI-tr&-j&n
Function : noun
Date : 1794
1. colorless odorless gas, dominant element in the atmosphere, non-metallic element used in the production of fertilizers and explosives (Chemistry). nitrogen\ni`tro*gen\ , n. [l. nitrum natron + -gen: cf. f. nitrogène. see:
niter.] (chem.) a colorless nonmetallic element, tasteless and odorless, comprising four fifths of the atmosphere by volume. it is chemically very inert in the free state, and as such is incapable of supporting life (hence the name azote still used by french chemists); but it forms many important compounds, as ammonia, nitric acid, the cyanides, etc, and is a constituent of all organized living tissues, animal or vegetable. symbol n. atomic weight.
2. it was formerly regarded as a permanent noncondensible gas, but was liquefied in 1877 by cailletet of paris, and pictet of geneva.nitrogen a common nonmetallic element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless inert diatomic gas; constitutes 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume; a constituent of all living tissues [syn: n, atomic number 7]nitrogen symbol: n atomic number: 7 atomic weight: 14.0067 colourless, gaseous element which belongs to group 15 of the periodic table. constitutes ~78% of the atmosphere and is an essential part of the ecosystem. nitrogen for industrial purposes is acquired by the fractional distillation of liquid air. chemically inactive, reactive generally only at high temperatures or in electrical discharges. it was discovered in 1772 by d. rutherford.-- elements.
3. A colorless nonmetallic element, tasteless and odorless, comprising four fifths of the atmosphere by volume.
4. It is chemically very inert in the free state, and as such is incapable of supporting life ; but it forms many important compounds, as ammonia, nitric acid, the cyanides, etc, and is a constituent of all organized living tissues, animal or vegetable.
5. Symbol N.
6. Atomic weight 14.
7. It was formerly regarded as a permanent noncondensible gas, but was liquefied in 1877 by Cailletet of Paris, and Pictet of Geneva. a common nonmetallic element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless inert diatomic gas; constitutes 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume; a constituent of all living tissues.
8. Nitrogen is a colourless element that has no smell and is usually found as a gas. It forms about 78% of the earth's atmosphere, and is found in all living things. a gas that has no colour or smell, and that forms most of the Earth's air. It is a chemical element : symbol N (nitrogène, from nitre ( NITIC ACID) + -gène ). Gaseous chemical element, chemical symbol N, atomic number.
9. A colourless, odourless, tasteless gas, it makes up 78% of Earth's atmosphere and is a constituent of all living matter. As the nearly unreactive diatomic molecule N2, it is useful as an inert atmosphere or to dilute other gases. Nitrogen is commercially produced by distillation of liquefied air. Nitrogen fixation, achieved naturally by soil microbes and industrially by the Haber-Bosch process, converts it to water-soluble compounds (including ammonia and nitrates). Industrially, ammonia is the starting material for most other nitrogen compounds (especially nitrates and nitrites), whose main uses are in agricultural fertilizers and explosives. In compounds, nitrogen usually has valence 3 or.
10. It forms several oxides including nitrous oxide (N2O; laughing gas), nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and other forms (such as N2O3 and N2O5). Some of the nitrogen oxides, often referred to generically as NOx, are notorious as contributors to urban air pollution. Other compounds include the nitrides, exceptionally hard materials made from nitrogen and a metal; cyanides; azides, used in detonators and percussion caps; and thousands of organic compounds containing nitrogen in functional groups or in a linear or ring structure (see:
heterocyclic compound). See also nitrogen cycle. nitrogen cycle nitrogen fixation nitrogen narcosis nitrogen euphoria.