What's that smell? Uhhh... Ammonia!

At least it's not butanoic acid... Uhhh... I recently had a nasty run in with that!

The Haber process is a reaction of nitrogen and hydrogen gasses, to produce ammonia. Before the advent of the Haber process, ammonia was difficult to produce on an industrial scale, though used in fertilisers and munitions. (YAY for feeding people, then shooting them...) Despite the heavy content of nitrogen in the air, it is a not very reactive gas, due to the strong triple bonds that hold the molecules together.

The process was developed in 1909, by a German scientist, called Fritz Haber. (Hasn't he some awesome spectacles?)

The equation:

N2 (g) + 3 H2 (g) <-> 2 NH3 (g)

(To my frustration, Blogger won't let me use an equilibrium sign.)

The gasses, a are passed over an iron catalyst and are heated to about 300 degrees centigrade with typically only a 15% conversion rate. This is repeated several times (recycled) so that an overall conversion of 98% can be achieved. The equation is an equilibrium reaction, so ammonia is at the same time converted back to nitrogen and hydrogen. Because of this, the process takes place under certain conditions to ensure the maximum of the desired product. I would explain more, but it would take a long time, and I'd probably bore you.

ZZAP! If this wasn't a semiconductor this shock would have frazzled my mind...

A semiconductor is a material that behaves in between a conductor and an insulator. At room temperature, it conducts electricity more easily than an insulator, but not as well as a conductor.  At very low temperatures, semiconductors behave like insulators. At higher temperatures semiconductors can become conductive. Examples of semiconductors are silicon, germanium, and gallium arsenide.

You can dope semiconductors. Luckily, this is not blasting them off of their faces with liberal amounts of drugs, it is the process of adding impurities to a semiconductor to increase its ability to conduct electricity. These combined with a normal semiconductor can make diodes - components in a circuit that conduct electricity in only one direction.

Semiconductors also make transistors - used to amplify and switch electric signals. They are used very commonly - in most electronic goods including computers. Circuit boards make heavy use of semiconductors.

Why I Like Moles

I like moles. Not the furry little critters, but 6.02x10^23. An amount.

Carbon's relative atomic mass is 12. 1 mole of Carbon weighs 12 grams. Mind blown? I think so.

Pity the chemistry kind don't have cute noses...

Moles are useful because they enable us to work out amounts of elements used in reactions, as long as we know the relative atomic mass of the elements or molecule. This is relatively simple to do so, and is hence why I like them; easy marks in tests!