AMMONIA – SCI & TECH
News: One
dead, over 35 injured after ammonia gas leaked in dairy in Bihar’s
Hajipur
What's in the news?
● One
person died and more than 35 people were injured after an ammonia gas cylinder
leaked at a dairy in Bihar’s Vaishali district.
Ammonia:
● Ammonia
is critical in the manufacturing of fertilizers
and is one of the largest-volume synthetic chemicals produced in the world.
● More
than 80 percent of ammonia made is consumed in the manufacturing of fertilizer,
and most of the remainder goes into the production of formaldehyde.
● A
tri-hydroid of nitrogen (NH3), ammonia is a building block for ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) that is used in
agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer.
Secretion in humans:
● Ammonia,
which is highly soluble in water, is
found in soil, air, and water; it is naturally present in the body.
● It
is secreted by the kidneys to neutralize excess acid.
● However,
it is highly diluted when in the environment and does not affect the human body
to a noticeable level.
Acceptable Limit:
The acceptable maximum limit of ammonia in drinking water as per the Bureau of
Indian Standards is 0.5 ppm.
Health concerns of Ammonia:
● Ammonia,
even in moderate concentration, can cause irritation
to eyes, skin, nose and throat.
● It
interacts immediately upon contact with moisture present in the skin, eyes,
oral cavity, and respiratory tract to form ammonium hydroxide.
● It
is very caustic and disrupts the cell
membrane lipids, ultimately leading to cellular destruction.
● As
cell proteins break down, water is extracted, resulting in an inflammatory response that causes
further damage.