Azot / Nitrogen (N)

Azot je hemijski element sa simbolom N i atomskim brojem 7. Prvi ga je otkrio i izolovao škotski lekar Daniel Rutherford 1772. godine. To je čest element u svemiru, procenjen kao sedmi u ukupnom obimu u Mlečnom putu i Sunčevom sistemu. Pri standardnoj temperaturi i pritisku, dva atoma elementa vezuju se za dinitrogen, dvobojni dvoatomni gas bez boje i mirisa sa formulom N2. Dinitrogen čini oko 78% Zemljine atmosfere, što ga čini najrasprostranjenijim nekombinovanim elementom. Azot se javlja u svim organizmima. Atom azota ima sedam elektrona. U osnovnom stanju su raspoređeni u elektronskoj konfiguraciji 1s² 2s² 2p³. Karl Vilhem Šile je 1771. godine dokazao da je azot osnovni sastojak vazduha. Čisti amonijak prvi put je dobio engleski hemičar Džozef Pristli 1774. godine. Već u 19. veku primećeno je da veći deo biljne materije sadrži azot i da je on važni gradivni elemenat svih živih bića. On je jedan od osnovnih elemenata koji grade belančevine i belančevinaste materije, kao i DNK. Azot je i osnovni sastojak svih enzima, koji upravljaju metabolizmom kod biljaka, životinja i čoveka. Stoga je on nezamjenjiv za celokupni život na Zemlji. Azot se danas primarno dobija frakcionom destilacijom tečnog vazduha u postrojenjima za razlaganje vazduha po Lindeovom postupku.

Nitrogen is a chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. It was first discovered and isolated by Scottish physician Daniel Rutherford in 1772. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at about seventh in total abundance in the Milky Way and the Solar System. At standard temperature and pressure, two atoms of the element bind to form dinitrogen, a colourless and odorless diatomic gas with the formula N2. Dinitrogen forms about 78% of Earth's atmosphere, making it the most abundant uncombined element. Nitrogen occurs in all organisms. A nitrogen atom has seven electrons. In the ground state, they are arranged in the electron configuration 1s² 2s² 2p³. In 1771, Carl Wilhelm Schiele proved that nitrogen was the basic component of air. Pure ammonia was first obtained by the English chemist Joseph Priestley in 1774. Already in the 19th century, it was noticed that most of the plant matter contains nitrogen and that it is an important building block of all living beings. It is one of the basic elements that make up proteins and protein substances, as well as DNA. Nitrogen is also a basic ingredient in all enzymes that control metabolism in plants, animals and humans. Therefore, he is irreplaceable for all life on Earth. Today, nitrogen is primarily obtained by fractional distillation of liquid air in air decomposition plants according to the Linde process.