NO2 along with water and oxygen create acid rain. Acid rain containing nitrates will get absorbed by the plants. When these plants are harvested, the nitrates in the soil will be stripped away, thus we have to replenish them with ammonium nitrate fertilizers. Nitrogen oxides can also be produced (manmade) using high pressure and at high temperature. 

Fertilizer can also destroy our environment if not used properly as it can contaminate our waters which causes blue babies.

We further learnt that ammonia acts as a base. It acts as Brønsted–Lowry base by accepting a proton (H+). Also, we learnt how ammonium is produced. i.e. the ammonium ion is formed by an acid-base reaction of ammonia with water, which is:

NH3(aq) + H2O(l) ⇌  NH4+(aq) + OH-(aq)

The main takeaway from the video project, however, was eutrophication. Excessive growth of algae is caused by the runoff of nitrogen based fertilizers into the rivers. Plants can’t photosynthesize as the sunlight is blocked by algae. They die afterwards. Bacteria in the water use up oxygen to decompose dead plants, starving other aquatic life of oxygen, destroying the ecosystem.

We then learnt about nitrogen oxides, both natural and manmade. For natural occurrences, nitrogen reacts with oxygen under extreme conditions (lightning) to produce NO and NO2. For manmade nitrogen oxides, under the high pressure and temperature inside a car engine, nitrogen can react with oxygen to form nitrogen oxides.

Finally, we went through the topic of catalytic converters. Nitrogen oxides are reduced on the surface of a hot catalyst to form unreactive and harmless nitrogen gas. The overall reaction goes as follows:

2CO + 2 NO —> 2CO2 + N2

I also learned further about nitrogen and sulfur (how a lot of the processes work) through making the group film while having fun.

I also had a lot of fun making the video with my friends, and I think it was a very effective way of learning the chapter because writing the scripts helps you memorize. 

ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and will turn damp red litmus paper blue as it is an alkaline gas

ammonia gas can be prepared from an ammonium salt and a base in an acid-base reaction involving ammonium chloride and calcium hydroxide. ammonium chloride (NH4Cl) and calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) are mixed together and then heated.

we also learned about catalytic converters. harmful nitrogen oxides, released through car exhaust fumes, are reduced to form harmless nitrogen gas with the aid of a hot catalyst, typically platinum. this nitrogen gas is then released back into the atmosphere.

mr gopi tasked a project for the class to investigate this chapter. we were assigned into groups where we had to make a short movie based on a storyline from the worksheet questions he gave us. this task not only helped in the understanding of the chapter, it also brought up other interesting topics, such as eutrophication and the blue-babies syndrome. 10/10 👍👍

Catalyst converters are used in car exhaust systems which filter the nitrogen monoxide and carbon monoxide gases into less harmful gases with the aid of a catalyst, platinum. 

I also learned that acid rain can cause so much damage to the environment such as destroying plants, lowering pH of rivers, causing buildings and statues to corrode. However, it can be controlled and reduced by producing low-sulfur versions of petrol and diesel. Therefore, sulfur is burned before released into the air.