Reactions of Nitrogen Activated by Electric Discharge

Abstract

For gaseous reactions of nitrogen with hydrogen or with oxygen, it was necessary to pass only the nitrogen through a glow discharge, the other gas being admitted at a later point in the flow line. Ammonia, nitrous oxide, and dinitrogen trioxide were formed, respectively. By suitable control of fields it was established that nitrogen ions were playing no direct role in the reactions but rather a neutral form of activated nitrogen in every case. Passing the hydrogen or oxygen alone through the discharge and then admixing nitrogen yielded no reaction product at all. Several further results indicated that ionic processes on the whole are not active in gas discharge reactions.