Replies to post #6666 on American Security Resources Corp. (ARSC)

[Argyll]

Early One

You live up to your name.

There are other sources, but not commonly used by modern ammonia producing plants.

Natural gas is a lot easier and less expensive.

There are manure digesters coming into more widespread use that produce natural gas but extracting ammonia from manure is not a common practice.

[EarlyOne]

Googling sources of ammonia I found the following:

SOURCES AND EMISSIONS
A. Sources
Ammonia is used in refrigeration, blueprinting machines, and as a neutralizing agent in the petroleum industry. It is also used in the manufacture of fertilizers, nitric acid, explosives, plastics, fuel cells, rocket fuel, synthetic fibers, dyes, and other chemicals. Emissions occur from the processing of guano, purification of refuse, sugar refining, tanneries, and in unpurified acetylene (Sax, 1987; HSDB, 1991).


The primary stationary sources that have reported emissions of ammonia in California are electric, steam and air conditioning, and petroleum refining facilities (ARB, 1997b).


Ammonia was registered for use as a pesticide, however as of January 15, 1985, it is no longer registered for pesticidal use in California (DPR, 1996).


B. Emissions
The total emissions of ammonia from stationary sources in California are estimated to be at least 20 million pounds per year, based on data reported under the Air Toxics "Hot Spots" Program (AB 2588) (ARB, 1997b).


C. Natural Occurrence
Ammonia is formed naturally by the decomposition of urine and manure. It has been observed in outer space and galactic dust clouds (HSDB, 1991).


AMBIENT CONCENTRATIONS
No Air Resources Board data exist for ambient measurements of ammonia.


INDOOR SOURCES AND CONCENTRATIONS
Indoor sources of ammonia include human and pet metabolic processes, cigarette smoke, and household cleaners (Suh et al., 1994). Several studies conducted in the eastern United States found that indoor residential levels of ammonia are significantly higher than outdoor levels. Suh et al. (1994) measured ammonia levels inside 47 State College, Pennsylvania homes; the average indoor level was 19.9 parts per billion (ppb) and the average outdoor level was 1.7 ppb. Brauer et al. (1991) monitored 11 homes in Boston, Massachusetts and found average indoor ammonia levels of 19.3 ppb in the winter and 8.1 ppb in the summer; average outdoor ammonia levels were 1.1 ppb and 1.9 ppb in the winter and summer, respectively. Suh et al. (1992) monitored 24 homes in Uniontown, Pennsylvania and found an average indoor ammonia level of 21.7 ppb and an average outdoor level of 0.3 ppb.


ATMOSPHERIC PERSISTENCE
Ammonia exists in the atmosphere in the gas phase, and is subject to gas-phase reaction with photochemically-produced hydroxyl radicals, wet and dry deposition, and reaction with gaseous nitric acid (to form particulate ammonium nitrate), and with aerosols to form ammonium salts. The gas phase reaction of ammonia with the hydroxyl radical is slow, with a calculated half-life of ammonia due to gas phase reaction with the hydroxyl radical is estimated to be about 2 months (Atkinson, 1995).


Here is an interesting website article: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/agdm/articles/hof/HofNov07.html

After reading the linked article above, it maybe expensive to obtain ammonia in the future especially if the U.S. has to import it.

Mike

[lowman]

The abundance of it is overwhelming, too. For instances, few people realize that pure pig, uhm, chit, if not ventilated from it's collection traps at commercial farms, is so noxious, it can kill a human being in less than one minute.

Yeah, don't mess with that pigchit. It just might kill ya.