Out of thin air

摘要

AS VITAL chemicals go, it's hard to beat ammonia. Industrial production began in the early 20th century, and it played a key role in the second world war and in two Nobel prizes, It brought about a global revolution in agriculture - today, crops grown using ammonia-based fertilisers feed no less than 48 per cent of the planet. Could ammonia also be the clean fuel of the future? When burned, it produces nothing more than water vapour and nitrogen, which makes up 78 per cent of Earth's atmosphere, Earlierthisyear Italian tyre-maker Marangoni built an ammonia-gasoline hybrid automobile, the Marangoni Toyota GT 86-R Eco-Explorer (see picture). The car can go for 178 kilometres onjust one tank of ammonia. So can ammonia itself be made in a clean way?