Ammonia
The second-most produced chemical in the world, ammonia's molecular structure is a single nitrogen atom bonded to three hydrogen atoms. It's used in huge volumes in agriculture, among other industries, and current production techniques are dirty and energy-intensive, using about 2% of the world's fossil-fuel energy and producing around 1% of total global man-made greenhouse emissions.
Ammonia has considerable potential as a clean fuel, storing more than 20 times as much energy by weight as today's lithium batteries. A lot of current research is focused on new totally clean production methods, as well as on new ways of extracting energy from ammonia as a potentially clean way to power long-haul ships and trucks.
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In 2021, Australian mining and cleantech company Fortescue announced a plan to float the world's first ammonia-powered ship by 2022. It's a bit late, and not quite as ammonia-powered as we hoped, but the Green Pioneer now appears ready to roll. -
Green ammonia offers a solution to one of the hardest tasks in decarbonization: replacing diesel in large ships. Yara is stepping forward with a commitment to launch the world's first clean ammonia-powered container ship, ready for service in 2026. -
Researchers have uncovered the mechanism by which our taste buds detect ammonium chloride, exemplified by the distinct taste of salty licorice. They say the discovery provides evidence for the existence of a sixth basic taste. -
Ammonia has been proposed as a clean fuel for ships, airliners, trucks and trains, but China's GAC believes it could also have a future in passenger cars. It's built a combustion engine to test the theory, capable of reducing emissions by around 90%. -
Traffic is among the biggest sources of air pollution, but what if the very roads they drive on could help clear the air? Engineers in Korea have now demonstrated that photocatalytic concrete can help reduce pollution in tunnels. -
Having already rolled out the world's first ammonia-fueled tractor and the world's first ammonia-fueled semi truck, Brooklyn company Amogy has now got hold of a 1957 tugboat, and plans to have the world's first ammonia-powered ship sailing this year. -
Science is quickly catching up to the powerful sniffers on dogs with its own range of artificial noses. Case in point: researchers modified E. coli bacteria to spin electrically conductive nanowires capable of detecting disease-related odor molecules. -
Claiming a system-level energy density 5X higher than batteries, Amogy has rolled out "the world's first ammonia-powered, zero-emission semi truck." It holds about 900 kWh of energy, like the Tesla Semi, but you can refuel it in about eight minutes. -
If all the major green ammonia projects on our shortlist are completed on schedule, their combined production total will be more than half of today's global ammonia industry by the mid-2030s – eliminating nearly 1% of global carbon dioxide emissions. -
A fundamental chemistry breakthrough promises to unlock ammonia as a clean fuel, and decarbonize the chemical industry in the process. Rice University researchers have created a small, LED-powered device that converts ammonia to hydrogen on the fly. -
Interest is growing in alternative fuel sources for heavy-duty vehicles that help sidestep heavy diesel pollution, and Amogy has broken new ground in this area by fitting its ammonia-fueled zero-emissions energy system to a John Deere tractor. -
Australian company Aviation H2 hopes to clean up commercial flight by converting existing aircraft to burn green ammonia instead of jet fuel. Director Christof Mayer tells us the team plans to have a 9-seat business jet flying on ammonia by mid-2023.
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