A colorless gas with a sharp, pungent smell, chemical formula NH₃, used in fertilizers, cleaning products, and industrial processes. Essential for nitrogen fixation in biological systems.
Named after the ancient Egyptian god Ammon, near whose temple in Libya a salt containing ammonia compounds was first obtained. The connection comes from sal ammoniacus (salt of Ammon), which medieval alchemists discovered near the temple. The modern chemical was isolated in 1774.
Ammonia is literally the smell of life and death - it's produced when proteins decompose but also essential for creating proteins in the first place through the Haber-Bosch process that feeds nearly half the world's population. This paradox makes it both a sign of decay and the foundation of agricultural abundance that supports billions of people.
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