Appearance
Nitrogen is a colourless, odourless gas.

Source
Nitrogen makes up 78% of the air, by volume. It is obtained by liquefaction and fractional distillation.

Uses
The largest consumer of Nitrogen in society is the Ammonia industry - the Haber Process - to produce fertilisers. The gas is used in the electronics industry as a blanketing medium during the production of such components as transistors, diodes etc. Large quantities of Nitrogen are used in annealing stainless steel and other steel mill products. The drug industry also uses large quantities of Nitrogen.

Nitrogen is used as a refrigerant both for the immersion freezing of food products and for the transportation of food. Liquid Nitrogen is used in missile work, and by the oil industry to build up great pressures in wells to force crude oil upwards.

General Information
The element Nitrogen is extremely inert, yet its compounds are so active as to be important in many essential foods, fertilisers, poisons and explosives.

When Nitrogen is heated, it combines directly with Magnesium, Lithium and Calcium. When mixed with Oxygen and subjected to electric sparks, it forms first Nitrogen monoxide and then Nitrogen dioxide. When mixed with Hydrogen and heated under pressure, Ammonia is formed (the Haber Process).