Question

Explain why Nitrolim is used as a fertiliser.

Answer 1

Hint: Nitrolim is the commercial name of Calcium Cyanamide ($CaC{{N}_{2}}$). Having learnt of its true identity and name, think of all the chemical substances it could help generate.

Complete step-by-step answer:
Before we delve into the specifics of why Nitrolim is used as a fertiliser, it is important to understand how it is produced and the history behind it.
Nitrolim is created by the Frank-Caro process (also known as cyanamide process) which involves the fixation of Nitrogen in Calcium Carbide ($Ca{{C}_{2}}$) with Nitrogen gas in a reactor vessel at about 1273K temperature according to the following chemical equation:
$Ca{{C}_{2}}+{{N}_{2}}\xrightarrow{1273K}CaC{{N}_{2}}+C$
The Frank–Caro process was the first commercial process that was used worldwide to fix atmospheric nitrogen and create a product which was widely used as fertilizer and commercially known as Lime-Nitrogen or Nitrolim, hence the name.
It is a very effective fertiliser as by simply adding water to Nitrolim, the production of both Calcium Carbonate and Ammonia takes place, both of which are excellent fertilisers in their own right.
$CaC{{N}_{2}}+3{{H}_{2}}O\to CaC{{O}_{3}}+2N{{H}_{3}}$
Ammonia (NH₃) is the foundation for the nitrogen (N) fertilizer industry. It can be directly applied to soil as a plant nutrient or converted into a variety of common N fertilizers.
Adding Calcium Carbonate on the other hand effectively and efficiently balances the soil pH.

Note: While it is important to know why Nitrolim is used as a fertiliser, any answer that does not contain details about its production is incomplete. Therefore, make sure that your answer to this question always includes the Frank-Caro process and its particulars.