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—Q. Nitrogen equivalent to ammonia. 
Ammonia consists of nitrogen combined with hydrogen. A pound 
of nitrogen will form more that a pound of ammonia, because the 
ammonia formed from a pound of nitrogen will contain that pound 
of nitrogen plus the necessary amount of hydrogen added to form 
ammonia. The chemical relations of nitrogen and ammonia are 
such that fourteen pounds of nitrogen will unite with exactly 
three pounds of hydrogen, and will, therefore, produce just 
seventeen pounds of ammonia; or one pound of nitrogen will 
make 1.214 pounds of ammonia. The figures contained in the 
column under “ Equivalent to ammonia” are, therefore, obtained | 
by multiplying the figures in the column under “ Determined as 
nitrogen” by 1.214. The figures in the “Equivalent to ammonia” 
column do not indicate that the fertilizers actually contain those 
amounts of ammonia, for they may contain no ammonia com- 
pounds at all, but it is intended to state under “ EQUIVALENT TO 
AMMONIA” simply how much ammonia there would be, us the nitrogen 
were all in the form of Ammonia. 
If, as is the usual practice, the manufacturer’s guarantee analysis ~ 
states the amount of nitrogen only in the form of ammonia, and 
if it is desired to know how much nitrogen the ammonia coniains, 
simply multiply the number representing the amount of ammonia 
by .8235, since one pound of ammonia contains .8235 pounds of 
nitrogen. 
Manufacturers very commonly express the amount of nitrogen 
- in the equivalent of ammonia, probably for the reason that, 
expressed as ammonia, larger figures are obtained than 
would be, if expressed as nitrogen; and the fertilizers appear to 
farmers to contain more nitrogen. While this method is in 
accordance with legal requirements and is entirely fair on the 
part of the manufactures, farmers should know that “nitrogen” 
and “ammonia” are not the same thing, since one pound of ammonia 
contains only about eight-tenths of a pound of nitrogen. 
. PuospHoric ACID. 
When we use the term “phosphoric acid” in connection with 
the chemical analysis of fertilizers, we mean a compound contain- 
ing phosphorus and oxygen, which compound is really not 
phosphoric acid at all and which could not well exist in fertilizers ; 
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