Flashcards
The Nitrogen Cycle
Cards in this deck (5)
- 1Nitrogen FixationNitrogen fixation is when nitrogen gas in the atmosphere is turned into nitrogen-containing compounds. Biological nitrogen fixation is carried out by bacteria and turns nitrogen into ammonia which goes onto from ammonium ions in solution which can be used by plants.
- 2AmmonificationAmmonification is when nitrogen compounds from dead organisms are turned into ammonia by saprobionts, which goes on to form ammonium ions. Animal waste also contains nitrogen compounds which are turned into ammonia by saprobionts and go on to form ammonium ions.
- 3NitrificationNitrification is when ammonium ions in the soil are changed into nitrogen compounds that can be used by plants (nitrates). First nitrifying bacteria change ammonium ions into nitrates, then other nitrifying bacteria change nitrites into nitrates.
- 4DenitrificationDenitrification is when nitrates in the soil are converted into nitrogen gas by denitrifying bacteria - they use nitrates in the soil to carry out respiration and produce nitrogen gas. This happens under anaerobic conditions.
- 5Other ways nitrogen gets into an ecosystemLightning - fixes atmospheric nitrogen into nitrogen oxides
Artificial fertilisers - produced from atmospheric nitrogen on an industrial scale during the Haber process
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- A-Level A Level Biology (Topic 5-B: Energy Transfer and Nutrient Cycles) Flashcards on The Nitrogen Cycle, created by Heather Jones on 23/10/2016.
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- Heather Jones
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