Functioning of Nitrogen - Lab Report Example

The principal element at the beginning of the creation of the universe was hydrogen. Through the creation and death of stars and the movement of the universe, other heavier elements were created. As has been postulated on Earth, the primordial soup in addition to atmospheric conditions caused the creation of organic molecules containing the principal elements: carbon, oxygen, sulfur, phosphorus, fluorine, bromine, chlorine, and nitrogen. In particular, nitrogen is important to biological functioning and may have something to do with the fact that nitrogen is the main constituent in the atmosphere.

Nitrogen is a diatomic element with an atomic number of seven and weighing approximately 14.0067 amu. It is a nonmetal and is located in group fifteen, period two of the periodic table. It is one of the main elements, which make up all organic compounds. It exists typically in pure form as either a gas or as a liquid at super-cooled temperatures. In addition, Daniel Rutherford discovered nitrogen in 1772. Since its discovery, we have learned that many natural cycles, such as the nitrogen cycle, affect how energy travels through the food chain. The importance of nitrogen in cellular and molecular biology has been emphasized. Industries have taken advantage of nitrogen through processes, such as the Haber process, which is used to create ammonia (Jones, 201-2).

As mentioned previously, ammonia (NH3) is an important nitrogen-containing compound, which is created industrially. It is used heavily in fertilizers as well as in some foods, medicines, etc. In large amounts, it can be toxic to humans. Trinitrotoluene, otherwise known as TNT, is a very explosive compound including nitrogen. It has widely been used as a common explosive device by both military and civilian groups. One of the reasons it is so highly valued as an explosive is due to its insensitivity to factors, which could accidentally detonate it. TNT is very toxic to humans when exposed to any portion of skin or accidentally ingested and can be fatal ("Trinitrotoluene (TNT)"). Lastly, amino acids contain large quantities of nitrogen. Amino acids are the building blocks for proteins, which themselves are the foundation for tissues and all other biological structures. There are twenty different amino acids in which DNA and RNA code for. Understanding the coding and structure of amino acids is especially important in the study of genetics and how to cure genetic disorders which originate from mutations and errors in the coding to create the amino acids (Ebbing, and Gammon, 1027-29).

One of the most important components in our physiology is the ability for neural communication via electrochemical signalling. The movement of ions causes an electrical charge, which is the basis of this communication. As in the study of general chemistry, electrical charges in solutions can only be facilitated through the use of ions. Therefore, having electrolytes in the body is required to ensure proper communication. Nitrates are a very good example of electrolytes that are needed in the body, and that are consumed daily. Another important medical application involving the use of nitrogen is dialysis. This is a treatment used on patients whose kidneys are in a state of failure.  The kidneys work as filters in the body, so when the kidneys fail, they do not filter out many of the toxins that are secreted by other organs, such as the nitrogen-containing compound, urea. As a result, the machine, which was created for dialysis, helps restore levels to normal by performing the filtering task itself. As a result, once someone is on dialysis, they can never come off of it, unless their kidneys start working again, or they receive a kidney transplant (Williams, 11-16). The biological process of osmosis is also important in the regulation of nitrogen. Osmosis is a diffusive process, which works by having water move from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration. As stated before, ions, such as nitrates, can affect this equilibrium process such as in the excretory system. Therefore, the proper levels of nitrates in the system ensure that osmosis is occurring in the way the body designed it.

Even though carbon is the principal “organic” element, nitrogen has many properties, which cannot only be applied in biology and medicine but also industrial applications as well. It is a highly versatile and reactive element, which means it, can be combined in many different compounds. It serves, as an integral piece in the biological puzzle as far as life would not be possible with the absence of nitrogen.