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Large quantities of fertilizer are washed into the Mississippi River from agricu

ID: 911268 • Letter: L

Question

Large quantities of fertilizer are washed into the Mississippi River from agricultural land in the Midwest. The excess nutrients collect in the Gulf of Mexico, promoting the growth of algae and edging out other aquatic life Com farmers typically use 5000 kg of ammonium nitrate per square kilometer of cornfield per year Ammonium nitrate can be prepared by the following reaction How much nitric acid would be needed to make the fertilizer needed for 1 km^2 of cornfield per year? The ammonium ions can be converted into NO_3 by bacterial action If 10% of the ammonium component of 5000 kg of fertilizer ends up as nitrate, how much oxygen would be consumed?

Explanation / Answer

the reaction is NH3+HNO3 ----> NH4NO3   (1+14+48)= 63g (14+4+14+48)= 90g b bSince, 90 g NH4NO3 requires 63 g HNO3. So, 5000Kg( 5000000g) NH4NO3 will require ( 63/90)* 5000000 g = 3500 kg of HNO3. So, 3500 Kg of HNO3 is required for 5000Kg of NH4NO3 for 1km2 cornfield.    part-2:- NH4+ + 2O2-----> NO3- + H2O + 2H+ 10% of 5000kg NH4NO3 = 500 Kg of NH4+ ions Since, 62 g of NO3- requires 64 g of O2 gas. So, 500kg( 500000g) will require (64/62)*500000g of O2 gas = 516.12 Kg of O2 gas.