This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (November 2023) |
The Haber process,[1] also called the Haber–Bosch process, is the main industrial procedure for the production of ammonia.[2][3] It converts atmospheric nitrogen (N2) to ammonia (NH3) by a reaction with hydrogen (H2) using a finely divided iron metal catalyst:
This reaction is slightly favorable in terms of enthalpy, but is disfavored in terms of entropy because four equivalents of reactant gases are converted into two equivalents of product gas. As a result, high pressures and moderately high temperatures are needed to drive the reaction forward.
The German chemists Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch developed the process in the first decade of the 20th century, and its improved efficiency over existing methods such as the Birkeland-Eyde and Frank-Caro processes was a major advancement in the industrial production of ammonia.[4][5][6] The Haber process can be combined with steam reforming to produce ammonia with just three chemical inputs: water, natural gas, and atmospheric nitrogen. Both Haber and Bosch were eventually awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry: Haber in 1918 for ammonia synthesis specifically, and Bosch in 1931 for related contributions to high-pressure chemistry.