Nitrogen a Greenhouse Gas?
The debate – Whether nitrogen a greenhouse gas? Nitrogen is a chemical element. Its chemical symbol is simply the letter N. The nitrogen in our atmosphere comes from both natural and human made sources. A key natural source of nitrogen is poultry manure, for example.
However, burning fossil fuels such as coal can also produce nitrogen compounds and release them into the atmosphere. This has led to debates over whether nitrogen is a greenhouse gas.
A greenhouse gas can be defined as a gas that leads to the greenhouse effect – i.e. the warming of the earth’s atmosphere (just like a huge greenhouse) due to a layer of polluting gases that trap the sun’s rays.
Is nitrogen a greenhouse gas?
The short answer to this question is no: nitrogen by itself is not responsible for trapping the sun’s rays. Since, nitrogen is not considered a greenhouse gas for the fact that they trap, absorb or transfer heat directly. The are not directly responsible for the growing problem of global warming and climate change.
However, nitrous oxide which has the chemical symbol N2O is a greenhouse gas. Nitrous oxide is two nitrogen atoms bonded with oxygen atom to make a molecule. It is released when fossil fuels are burned. Nitrous oxide is considered an important greenhouse contributes to the growing global warming.
Conclusion: How can you reduce the amount of nitrous oxide in the atmosphere?
