“ THE WONDERS OF AMMONIA”

Ammonia is an industrial chemical used in agriculture and industry. Ammonia occurs naturally and is produced by human activity. It is an important source of nitrogen which is needed by plants and animals. Bacteria found in the intestines also can produce ammonia!!! Interesting isn’t it?

Ammonia is a colourless gas with a very distinct odour. This odour is familiar to many people because ammonia is used in smelling salts, many household and industrial cleaners, and window-cleaning products. Ammonia gas also can be dissolved in water. This kind of ammonia is called liquid ammonia or aqueous ammonia. Those ammonia exposed to the air, will quickly turn into gas. Ammonia does not last very long in the environment. It is rapidly taken up by plants, bacteria, and animals. Ammonia also does not build up in the food chain, but serves as a nutrient for plants and bacteria. Ammonia is generally processed into a variety of fertilizer products before being applied to the soil. These products include urea, ammonium nitrates, ammonium sulphate and ammonium phosphates. Urea plants are integrated with ammonia production as they require the carbon dioxide by-product from ammonia units. Ammonia also has a number of industrial end uses. Ammonium nitrate is used to make explosives while the medical grade is decomposed to nitrous oxide (laughing gas). Ammonium bicarbonate has applications in baking powder formulations, in fire extinguishers and as a blowing agent in the manufacture of polymers. Other uses for ammonia include as a cleaning and bleaching agent, and as a household cleaner. It is also used as a preharvest cotton defoliant and in metal treating operations. Ammonia also keeps away moths as the smell of ammonia is not pleasant. Well, that’s not it. There are other uses of ammonia that many people don’t really know

Ammonia actually provides the cheapest way to clean and make crystals and jewellery sparkle. The fact is, by using ammonia , we can actually polish crystals and clean gold and silver jewellery. This can be done by just soaking the jewellery and crystals for five to ten minutes. Not only that, ammonia can also repel garbage odour. How versatile is Ammonia? As a healing element? Ammonia heals venom bites by attacking the protein particles on the surface of the bite. Well, that is something that most of us don’t really know.

To wrap up , ammonia is not only used in fertilizers ,but it is used as a multipurpose compound that contributes to the benefit of mankind.

An ASPIRIN a day keeps the doctor away???

Aspirin is one of the most common drugs used in our daily life. It is still mostly the widely used drugs in the world. It is commonly used to relieve headache and muscle and joint pain. Aspirin is chemically known as acetylsalicylic acid. It is made by chemical synthesis of salicylic acid. It has analgesic, antipyretic, and anti-inflammatory properties, and belongs to the class of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The name was originally a trade name registered in 1899 by Bayer, but has become the preferred name for the drug. Aspirin was introduced more than 100 years ago, as an analgesic that helps relieving minor aches and pains and reduce fever. Later on, it became a long term aid known to reduce the risk of heart attacks by thinning the blood. It also repairs damaged blood vessels which turned aspirin into the most widely used and famous medicine around the world. Though there are debates for and against the use of aspirin, it is still widely used around the world. Aspirin was called a Wonder Drug and proved amazing abilities in keeping the blood from clotting which can help prevent stroke or heart attacks. Aspirin is not recommended for children, including teenagers, in cold or flu symptoms. This is because; it has been linked to Reye’s syndrome. On the other hand, there is increasing evidence that regular use of aspirin may reduce the risk of developing breast cancer and colorectal cancer or known as bowel cancer. But, scientists are still doing research on it. Scientists did some research on it and found out that aspirin can actually reduce the risk of pregnancy complications in women with pre-eclampsia for those with antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome is actually an uncommon autoimmune disorder associated with an increased risk of miscarriage, pre-eclampsia, low birth weight and foetal death. Remember, just like other drugs, aspirin also has its serious side effects.

“THE CHEMISTRY OF BAKING SODA. HOW UNIQUE IS IT? ”

Baking soda or sodium hydrogen carbonate ( NaHCO3 ) is a common chemical element used for baking. When baking soda is used for baking, carbon dioxide (CO2), gas is formed. This is because, when heat is generated during baking , baking soda is broken down and CO2is produced, making the dough of bread or cake to rise. This is why cakes and breads have bubble like patterns on them.

We might think that baking soda is only used for raising the dough that we make for our cakes and breads. Baking soda is actually used for deodorizing acid based odours , washing ,cooking vegetables and reducing acne and scars. First of all, why baking soda is used for deodorizing and how does it work? Baking soda is alkaline as its pH is about 8.1. Therefore, it neutralizes and absorbs acid based odours. Examples of odours that can be removed by using baking soda are, refrigerator odour, pet odours, laundry odour , garbage odour and footwear odour. These odours are simply removed by just sprinkling baking soda at the place of the odour . In other words, baking soda acts as absorbent that absorbs bad odours.

Baking soda can also be used for washing and removing stains and dirt from kitchen utensils. Stains and dirt on kitchen utensils contain a substance called lipid or fat. Since baking soda is alkaline, it saponifies the lipid softens it. When the stain or dirt is loosened by the baking soda , it can be easily removed and washed by just using water. During the process of removing dirt and stains, baking soda reacts with the water used and brakes down into HCO¯3 and H+ ion in water. These negatively charged ions will attack the positively charged portions of the stain or dirt making it more easier to be expelled.

Baking soda can be used to cook vegetables. Baking soda is actually used to soften hard vegetables. How does baking soda work on vegetables ? Well, vegetables are made up of fiber and cellulose. Baking soda is alkaline , so it softens the vegetable’s fiber layer .

Speaking about reducing acne and scars, baking soda definitely can make that wonder happen too. Acne is caused by fungal infection and bacterias from hair follicles when hair falls onto the face. So, baking soda which is alkaline helps to neutralize the acidic environment surrounding the bacteria and fungi destroying the cell walls of the bacteria and fungi .In this case, baking soda can be used on the hair before shampooing. Moreover, for treating scars due to acne or pimples, baking soda is mixed with water and simply applied to the face . Baking soda acts as a natural exfoliant and has the ability to remove acne scars and blackheads left by pimples.

In a nutshell, baking soda or sodium hydrogen carbonate is not only used for baking or cooking but it is a versatile element which can be used for cleaning and keeping our skin scar free and flawless.

no life without salt!!!

Sodium chloride which is normally known as salt. In my daily life, i have been taking salt every day. Sodium is the second member of the alkali family, the group of elements that make up Group 1 of the periodic table. Sodium has an atomic number of 11, an atomic mass of 22.98977, and a chemical symbol of Na. Salt has a lot of uses in daily life. Since ancient times, the salt sodium chloride has been of importance. It has been used in numerous ways including the flavoring and preserving of food and even as a form of money. This salt improves the flavor of food items such as breads and cheeses, and it is an important preservative in meat, dairy products, margarine and other items. This is because it retards the growth of microorganisms or any bacteria. Salt promotes the natural development of color in ham and hot dogs and enhances the tenderness of cured meats like ham by causing them to absorb water. In the form of iodized salt, it is a carrier of iodine. (Iodine is necessary for the synthesis of our thyroid hormones which influence growth, development and metabolic rates). Picture shown above are salt lake.
The earliest evidence we have for people producing salt comes from northern China, where people seem to have been harvesting salt from a salt lake, Lake Yuncheng, by 6000 BC and maybe earlier.
In Egypt, people were using salt to preserve meat and fish by about 3000 BC, around the beginning of the Old Kingdom. The Egyptians also used salt to preserve mummies. They evaporated seawater from the Mediterranean Sea, and also bought salt from Libya.

Picture in your right is the salt making place at India.
The chemical industry uses large amounts of sodium chloride salt to produce other chemicals. Chlorine and sodium hydroxide are electrolically produced from brine. Brine is actually a solution of sodium chloride and water that may or may not contain other salt. Chemicals produced as a result of sodium chloride reactions are used in ceramic glazes, metallurgy, curing of hides, and photography.
Sodium chloride has a large and diverse range of uses. It is spread over roads to melt ice by lowering the melting point of the ice. The salt has an important role in the regulation of body fluids. It is used in medicines and livestock feed. In addition, salt caverns are used to store chemicals such as petroleum and natural gas.

“Chlorine In Treating Swimming Pools . Is It Safe ?”

Chlorine (Cl₂) is a reactive element produced in the form of solid and liquid. Chlorine are usually used as disinfectants and sterilizers to clean swimming pools. Chlorine is added to swimming pools just after the pool is filtered. The filtering process is done by using a chemical feeder.

Once chlorine is added into the pool water, hypochlorous acid (HOCL) and hypochlorite ion (OCl¯) are formed. These chemicals kill microorganisms, algae and bacterias such as E. coli. and Pseudomonas, Adenovirus through a process called oxidation. The lipids in the cell walls of the bacteria are attacked and the enzymes and structures inside the bacteria’s cell are destroyed by chlorine. Bacterias in swimming pools could cause pool users to have respiratory , intestinal and skin problems . Therefore, when chlorine is added into the swimming pool , the bacterias in the swimming pool become harmless to swimmers.

Even though using chlorine to clean swimming pools is beneficial to swimmers, it still carries a number of negative side effects to them. One of the side effects are, swimmers may have higher potential to develop asthma. Researches conducted by scientists have shown that people who regularly swim in chlorinated pools have increased number of their lung proteins in their blood which would elevate the chances of them getting asthma.

Other than that, chlorine in swimming pools can cause nausea and skin irritation to swimmers. There is one most shocking side effect of chlorine towards pool users, which is cancer. Eventhogh human skin acts as barrier to protect the body from chemical and toxic substances , the human skin has the ability to absorb the chlorine by-products leading them to into the body tissues. When excessive chlorine enters the body tissues, it mutates the cells causing them to become cancerous.

In conclusion, There are many myths saying that chlorine in swimming pools have potential healing abilities such as reducing acne and healing skin problems for swimmers. In actual fact, it might help for some people, but it brings more negative effects than positive effects to many people.