Chapter 276: Synthetic Ammonia
After watching the tank demonstration, Arthur continued his busy schedule and met with Fritz Haber from Germany a few days later.
Haber's name might sound unfamiliar to those who are not deeply involved in the chemical industry. However, if you bring up the topic of synthetic ammonia technology, his name would be much more recognized.
Haber was born into a Jewish family in Breslau, Silesia, Germany, and was a renowned German chemist. He had achieved significant success in 1909 by synthesizing ammonia from air, for which he was awarded the Victoria Chemical Prize at the end of 1909. He also received a personal invitation from Arthur to come to the Royal Physical Chemistry Association of Australasia.
The Royal Physical Chemistry Association had its origins in the Royal Physical Research Association, and its chief president was Albert Einstein. The reason for establishing the Physical Chemistry Research Association was to attract top-tier physical chemists from Europe and around the world.
So far, Arthur's investment in the Royal Physical Chemistry Association had exceeded ten million Australian dollars, and the achievements were indeed impressive. Numerous renowned physicists and chemists, including Einstein and Haber, had been personally invited by Arthur to work at the association.
These scientists only needed to change their nationality to that of Australasia to receive a salary of at least 5,000 Australian dollars per year, along with a minimum of 50,000 Australian dollars in annual research funding. In addition, all public research labs, university facilities, and some equipment across Australasia were made available to the association's members free of charge.
In short, becoming a member of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association meant that research funds were provided by the association, high salaries were given, and even the daily needs of the members and their families were taken care of. For scientists passionate about research but financially struggling, this was indeed a godsend. Thanks to these conditions, the association had already attracted over 20 members, all top-tier physical chemists from Europe and the United States with notable achievements and recognition in the field.
Haber's reputation, however, was tarnished in later years, as he served as the director of a chemical weapons factory during World War I, where he was responsible for the production of chlorine gas and mustard gas, both of which were used in the war and caused nearly a million casualties. This inhumane act led to condemnation from scientists in countries such as the United States, Britain, and France, and significantly damaged Haber's reputation within the scientific community.
However, this did not diminish his scientific talents. The synthetic ammonia technology he developed was of great national importance.
Of course, speaking of synthetic ammonia technology brings up the importance of ammonia itself. Ammonia is a colorless gas with a strong, pungent odor. It is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen and is highly soluble in water. It is a crucial raw material for producing nitrate fertilizers and explosives.
The significance of synthetic ammonia technology becomes even clearer when we mention the importance of saltpeter, which is used to make gunpowder and agricultural fertilizers. The importance of saltpeter mines is unparalleled, and only a few countries control them.
The world's largest saltpeter mine, located in the Pampa Desert region of Chile, has remained the largest saltpeter-producing area and exporter in the world even into later years. This led to wars between Chile and neighboring countries, but ultimately, Chile successfully obtained control of the mines.
With British support, Chile became one of the three strongest countries in South America, but at the cost of the British firmly occupying the saltpeter mines. The British had almost complete control over the mining and sales of saltpeter.
The British Empire's monopoly over saltpeter mines caused dissatisfaction in many other countries. The raw material was crucial for military and agricultural purposes, and even if these countries could not access the British-controlled saltpeter mines, they needed to find alternatives to produce gunpowder and fertilizers.
Among the many substitutes for saltpeter, ammonia was one of the most important alternatives. As early as 1795, attempts were made to synthesize ammonia under normal atmospheric pressure, but they failed. More experiments were conducted at various pressure levels, but they too ended in failure.
It wasn't until the second half of the 19th century that some progress was made. Significant advances in physics and chemistry led to the realization that the reaction between nitrogen and hydrogen to form ammonia was reversible. Increasing the pressure would drive the reaction towards ammonia production, while increasing the temperature would move it in the opposite direction. However, temperatures that were too low slowed the reaction. Catalysts played an important role in the reaction. This theoretical understanding helped guide experiments on ammonia synthesis.
The authority in physical chemistry at the time, Germany's Walther Nernst, pointed out that nitrogen and hydrogen could synthesize ammonia under high-pressure conditions, and he provided experimental data to support this.
The French chemist Le Chatelier was the first to attempt high-pressure ammonia synthesis experiments, but an explosion occurred due to oxygen contamination in the nitrogen-hydrogen mixture, forcing him to abandon the dangerous experiment. Haber, with a solid background in physical chemistry, was determined to overcome this daunting challenge.
Haber conducted a series of experiments to explore the best physical and chemical conditions for synthesizing ammonia. Some of the data he obtained differed from Nernst's, and he did not blindly follow authority but instead relied on experimentation to verify his findings. He eventually confirmed that Nernst's calculations were incorrect.
With the assistance of an English student, Lawson, Haber successfully designed a high-pressure experimental apparatus and a process for synthesizing ammonia. The process involved passing steam over hot coke to obtain a mixed gas of carbon monoxide and hydrogen in nearly equal volumes. Under the influence of a catalyst, carbon monoxide would react further with steam to produce carbon dioxide and hydrogen. The gas mixture was then dissolved in water under pressure, with the carbon dioxide absorbed to yield purer hydrogen gas. Similarly, mixing steam with air and passing it through red-hot carbon would produce carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, which would be absorbed and removed, leaving the required nitrogen gas.
The mixture of nitrogen and hydrogen gases would then undergo ammonia synthesis under high temperature, high pressure, and the influence of a catalyst.
But what were the ideal high temperatures and pressures? Which catalyst was best? These questions required extensive exploration. Through persistent experimentation and calculations, Haber finally achieved a breakthrough in 1909.
At 600°C, 200 atmospheres of pressure, and using osmium as the catalyst, Haber achieved an ammonia yield of about 8%. While the 8% conversion rate wasn't high, it certainly affected the economic feasibility of production.
Haber knew that the ammonia synthesis reaction couldn't reach the near-100% conversion rate seen in sulfuric acid production, where sulfur dioxide oxidation reactions almost achieve complete conversion. What should be done? Haber believed that if the reaction gases could be recycled under high pressure, and ammonia could be continuously separated from this cycle, the process would be viable. He successfully designed a cycle for raw material gases, known as the Haber process for synthesizing ammonia.
Once synthetic ammonia technology was born, Haber's name became well-known throughout the European chemical community. After obtaining the patent for the Haber process for synthetic ammonia, Haber received the news that he had won the Victoria Chemical Prize that year.
To take his process out of the laboratory and into industrial production, Haber decided to accept Arthur's invitation to join the Royal Physical Chemistry Association of Australasia.
Of course, what truly attracted Haber, besides the conditions offered by the Royal Physical Chemistry Association, was Arthur's extra promise: if Haber was willing to share his process with Australasia, the country would do everything in its power to rapidly industrialize his process, constructing an ammonia synthesis plant within five years and putting it into production.
At that time, the profits would be shared with Haber, and he would be invited to serve as the vice president of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association. Arthur was confident that he could build a fully operational ammonia synthesis plant, given that Haber's synthetic ammonia plan had already been realized in 1913, with a plant capable of producing 30 tons of ammonia per day.
Arthur didn't believe that, with the full backing of the nation, they could fall behind a chemical company in Germany.
On the day after Haber's arrival, Arthur announced his appointment as vice president of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association and, with the witness of Haber and Kent the butler, declared that the royal consortium would invest one million Australian dollars to build the ammonia synthesis plant using the Haber process.
Haber contributed his ammonia synthesis process, holding a 40% stake, while Arthur's royal consortium contributed one million Australian dollars and held 60%.
The ammonia synthesis plant was located at the Leonora Industrial Base. While constructing the plant itself was not particularly difficult, the specific equipment and methods for industrial-scale ammonia production would require extensive research by Haber and the members of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association.
Arthur made a promise: if the Royal Physical Chemistry Association could solve the production challenges, the royal consortium would donate one million Australian dollars in research funding and give every member an additional 20,000 Australian dollars as a reward.
The one million Australian dollars in research funds would be divided among the more than 20 experts in the Royal Physical Chemistry Association, with each receiving tens of thousands of dollars. Additionally, the reward of 20,000 Australian dollars per member was equivalent to four years of salary, making it highly attractive to the members.
The salary of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association's members was already quite substantial, and their actual income, including research funds, was even higher than most experts in Europe. Given the free use of research labs and annual research funds, it's no wonder the experts were willing to change their nationality and come to Australasia.
With the challenge of industrializing synthetic ammonia production now in the hands of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association and with Haber overseeing the construction of the ammonia plant, Arthur was able to relax.
In fact, beyond ammonia synthesis, Australasia was also placing great emphasis on the chemical industry.
Several new chemical plants at the Leonora Industrial Base were benefiting from Australasia's strong support for the chemical industry. In addition to extra tax benefits, the royal consortium and government also provided double loans to ensure these industries had enough funds for development.
Currently, regular industrial tax rates were about 11%, while chemical industries paid only 8%. These chemical plants occasionally received free assistance from the members of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association, and if funding allowed, they could hire these members as consultants.
Additionally, the Australasia government was also offering greater support to chemical engineering programs at various universities. More students were being admitted into these programs, and tuition fees and other costs were reduced. More scholarships and benefits were provided to nurture future talents for the chemical industry.
Currently, the strongest chemical engineering programs were at the University of Australasia and Auckland University. The University of Australasia admitted up to 400 students each year for chemical engineering, and Auckland University took in 200 students annually.
Along with the chemical engineering programs at other universities, Australasia was training at least 700 students annually, addressing the shortage of professionals in the chemical industry.
However, when it came to top-tier chemical talents, Australasia had yet to develop its own training methods and had to rely on recruiting from Europe and the United States.
With the strong relationship between Australasia and Germany, it was relatively easy for Australasia to invite chemical experts from Germany.
So far, Australasia had recruited over 40 well-known experts from Europe, and most of them were now part of the Royal Physical Chemistry Association. The remaining experts had joined the chemical engineering programs at major universities under Arthur's arrangement, ensuring a steady supply of mid-level talents in the field.
While the chemical industry has both its advantages and drawbacks, the benefits far outweigh the negative aspects, and its importance for national development cannot be understated.
Thanks to various measures taken to support the chemical industry, many chemical factories have emerged, and talents in the field are steadily increasing.
(End of Chapter)
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