Alchemy of Air Summary – Flashcards
Flashcard maker : Killian Parsons
1898
Sir William Crookes addressed the food crisis that was soon to come when the South American fertilizer that the western world depended on ran out
He said that by the 1930s, what would happen?
humanity would be dying of starvation in masses.
He called for scientists to find a way to do what?
Produce more Nitrogen to grow crops and support the exploding population.
Peruvian guano from guano islands came______, then Chilean nitrates from the _________ desert.
first, Atacama
Peru was what when it came to the money it made off of guano?
Irresponsible
What did Peru do, as a result of the guano running out?
Peru wanted a part of the nitrate trade but the Chileans had already taken a hold of it
Who was the Dictator of Bolivia during the nitrate war?
Hilarión Daza
What does Nersnt do at the conference where Haber is speaking at?
Opposes him, they argue about the results of an experiment that Haber did
Who created a system in which nitrogen could be fixed at large amounts that could be used and sold?
Haber and le Rossignol
To which company did Haber and Rossignol did they market their invention to?
BASF
BASF was originally a company mainly dedicated to …?
Dye company
What was the issue of the invention?
increasing the yield
What was the first catalyst that was used?
Osmium
Why was Osmium not a viable catalyst?
Because the supply of Osmium in the world was very low
What was the second catalyst that was used?
Iron mixed with potassium hydroxide
When the upscaled version of Haber’s machine blew up, what did Bosch find?
found that the metal had gone brittle from the great pressure and hydrogen
What did Bosch first do to fix the problem of the upscaled Haber machine explosion after his discovery?
He put a middle layer of gold
Bosch found that the best solution of the upscaled Haber machine explosion would be to?
•Put in small holes to let small amounts of Hydrogen out
•fitting the inside of the steel with soft iron to absorb the hydrogen
•fitting the inside of the steel with soft iron to absorb the hydrogen
What is the name of the first ammonium factory made?
Oppau
Why was the gold middle layer not a good option?
Because it was too expensive and still made the steel outer lining brittle.
In what year did Bosch earn his Nobel Prize?
1931
Seeing that when access to Chilean nitrates was cut off to Germany, the country would not be able to make gunpowder and fertilize their crops, what did Bosch do?
He asked BASF if their process could be adjusted to make nitrates so they could get government funding instead of an opposing process that required more materials.
What happened after Bosch asked the company to adjust their ammonium process?
Gained a contract with the German Government to make nitrate using the Haber-Bosch process.
What month and year did WWII begin?
September 1939
What did BASF do once the war started?
BASF ended up opening a new, bigger factory that was dubbed Leuna (again named after the nearest town)
After WWII started, what did Haber do?
devoted his time to developing a way to make better deadly gases to use in chemical warfare
Hitler used the Haber-Bosch process to do what?
To create gas for tanks and other vehicles
Haber developed a _______ gas to kill soldiers in the war?
Chlorine
But Haber rose through the ranks and became a __________ from his invention
Captain
After Germany lost the war, what did the Allied Nations do?
Went into Germany and tried to take BASF’s trade secrets from their factories
How did Bosch elude the Allied Nations when they went into the factories after Germany lost the war?
refusing to turn on his machines in their presence among other things
During the Versailles conference, what did Bosch do? Why?
He made a deal with a French company, so he sold the French company some Haber-Bosch secrets in order for securing that his factories would be allowed to remain functional
Even though other countries eventually found out the Haber-Bosch secrets and made their own factories, how did BASF manage to stay ahead of competition?
By improving their factories at lightening speed
How did Haber work on making Germany great again and repaying reparations?
By unsuccessfully trying to find a way to take the gold out of sea water
What happened to the Oppau plant after WWII ended?
It exploded
What was IG Farben and who was the head of it?
It was the German chemical companies merged together and Bosch was the leader.
What was the next innovation that Bosch was thinking of to keep his company at the top?
The possibilities of synthetic oil.
Bosch made international ties with which companies with synthetic oils?
Standard Oil and Ford Motor Company
IG Farben expanded and created __________ in other countries to avoid ______.
factories; tariffs
There became a surplus of oil when what happened?
A huge oil well was found in Oklahoma
Farben continued their research of synthetic oils because why?
Because they had already invested too much money
How did BASF stay afloat during the Great Depression?
Through the steady sales of fertilizers and small sales of synthetic oils
