There tends to be so much focus on how carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH4) contribute to greenhouse gases, but nitrogen oxides are approximated to be about 300 times more potent than CO₂ in terms of their impact on climate alteration.

SOURCES OF NITROGEN OXIDE CONTAMINATION

Nitrogen oxides (NOx = NO + NO2) are a primary component of air pollution—a leading cause of premature death in humans and biodiversity declines worldwide. These gases are among the most important components of air pollution and according to the World Health Organization (WHO), nitrogen oxides are responsible for one in eight premature deaths worldwide.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) is classified an extremely hazarduous substance, subject to strict reporting requirements by facilities which produce, store, or use it in significant quantities. The most prominent sources of NO₂ contamination come from :

•  internal combustion engines

• cigarette smoke, butane and kerosene heaters

• heavily fertilised agricultural soils

• Agricultral workers exposed to NO₂ rising from grain decomposing in silos

Small day-to-day variations in NO2 can cause alterations in lung function. Chronic exposure to NO2 can bring about respiratory effects including airway inflammation in healthy people and increased respiratory symptoms in people with asthma. 

NO2 occupational exposures constitute the highest risk of toxicity and it is often high for ;

• farmers, especially those dealing with food grain

• firefighters and military personnel, especially those officers that deal in explosives. 

• high for arc welders

• traffic officers

• aerospace staff

• miners and

• individuals with occupations connected with nitric acid.

FOSSIL FUELS

NOx gas is emitted from a pipe or channel conveying exhaust gases and toxic fumes from a fireplace, oven, boiler, steam generator or furnace and gas stoves. 

Fossil fuels combusted from such systems, tend to have significant amounts of NOx emissions which are both dangerous and hazardous to human health and the environmental elements arising from the formation of substances such as nitric acid mist and acidic rain. 

As such, the neutralisation and capture of NOx gas in both industrial and domestic settings, is of crucial importance.

HEALTH, ECOLOGICAL & ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES

NOx gases have been linked to upper respiratory disease, asthma, cancer, birth defects, cardiovascular disease, and sudden infant death syndrome. NO2 is sparingly soluble in water and on inhalation, it diffuses into the lung and slowly hydrolyzes to nitrous and nitric acid, which then causes lung disease, lung damage and upon chronic exposure, it can prove to be fatal. NO2 also has negative effects on reproductive potency and in sever cases, results in cancer.

As for aquatic life, reactive nitrogen is soluble and can easily make its way into watercourses via runoffs where it encourages plant growth, sometimes resulting in ‘algal blooms’ which reduce light and oxygen levels in the water. This alters plant communities and kills fish, creating marine "dead zones". This has disastrous consequences for biodiversity and local livelihoods.

Evidently, air pollution, health, and the climate ought to be jointly considered, in the assessment of how combustion fuel practices affect reactive nitrogen oxide emissions. The interaction of NO2 and other nitrogen oxides (NOx) with water, oxygen and other chemicals in the atmosphere can form acid rain which harms sensitive ecosystems such as lakes and forests. Elevated levels of NO2 can also harm vegetation, decreasing growth, and reduce crop yields. Reducing NOx emissions therefore offers a win-win situation for farmers, environmental health, and the economy. 

Considering the fact that the economic benefits of improved air and water quality overwhelmingly outweigh the costs of emission reduction measures, there are substantial grounds to prioritise curbing Nitrogen emissions, from agricultural, traffic, domestic and industrial sources.

ECO RN

COLOUR : White Nanopowder

SURFACE AREA (BET) : 35930 m²/kg

AVERAGE NOx ABSORPTION : approx. 49.7 mg of NOx per gram of nano-biomaterial

AVERAGE DOSAGE IN COATINGS* (e.g. in flue systems, on walls of buildings, seed silos, freestall barns & manure storage walls) : ~ 0.2 g per litre

AVERAGE DOSAGE PER m3 OF MANURE:  8.3 g

1 cubic metre (m3) of manure = 400 kg

AVERAGE DOSAGE IN SOIL IRRIGATION WATER (for ~ 19.8 kg of N ha−1 year−1 ) *: 0.0004 wt % (i.e. 0.1 g per 25L) - per year or 1.09 kg per hectare, per year. (more info in applications section below)

1 hectare is irrigatEd with approx. 250,000 L of water

APPLICATIONS : 

• Anti-pathogenic agent against Gram-negative (E. coli) and Gram-positive (S. aureus) bacteria, the fungi Aspergillus niger and Penicillium oxalicum ( ~ 150 - 250 μg/mL or 0.15 to 0.25g per litre)

• It helps preserve surfaces from acidic rain damage resulting from SOx and NOx pollutants

• Effective nano-sorbent for SO2 (wet flue), propionaldehyde, benzaldehyde, ammonia, dimethylamine, N-nitrosodiethylamine and methanol. Smoke suppression and flame retardant.

• Effective nano-sorbent for phosphates, NO2 and NH3 capture. 

Upon reaction with NO2 , a mixture of nitrate (NO3 ), NO and nitrogen (N) are formed nan-biomaterial surface. NO3 is a thermally stable specie that typically decomposes at temperatures between 177 and 327 °C.. 

When these adsorbates are bound to the nano-biomaterial surface however, NO2 species are retained on the nano-biomaterial surface up to about 327 °C , and the NO3  tends to be stable at temperatures up to 527  °C. 

This means the nano-biomaterial can retain NOx  can help minimise the emissions from manure

Nitrates (NO3 ) in the soil are a primary source of nitrogen which is essential for plant growth. Essentially, plant roots absorb nitrates for healthy growth. and they need the nitrate for producing amino acids which are then used to form proteins. It regulates the overall nitrogen metabolism and provides uninterrupted nitrogen for chlorophyll biosynthesis. This makes the thermal stability of the absorbed NOx important because : 

•  The emission rates of  NOx  can be curbed in hot climates and drought situations and

•  Due the high soluble and biodegradable nature of NO3 fertiliser specie being bound to the nano-biomaterial surface, where the paticles act as nitrate storage systems. NO3 fertiliser is hence retained in the soil via the nano-biomaterial surface longer periods throughout the year in a delayed release mechanism.

An extended availability of NO3 reduces the need for repetitive fertiliser usage and saves farmers millions of dollars, preserves soil health, cleans the air and restores a balance in the ecosystem. 

This approach is designated to keep N in the soil longer and released slowly to plants over time via diffusive mechanisms as the N content deminishes in the surrounding soil, rather than being emitted into the atmosphere as a harmful NOx air pollutant.

Being bound to a water insoluble mineral nano-biomaterial is also likely to reduce the excessive runoff of nitrogen into waterways and minimise aquatic pollution.

• Reduces soil acidity.

• Soil amendment, soil conditioner

• Contains an essential element to most biological systems, which becomes available to soil and groundwater microbial populations during metals remediation, as an added benefit.