What harm does ammonia do to the human body

Ammonia is a colorless gas with a strong pungent smell. It is a gas that is particularly soluble in water. It is also a raw material for the manufacture of nitric acid, explosives and fertilizers. We usually come into contact with it through fertilizers and firecrackers, and we can also smell the pungent and unpleasant odor. Generally, we are not exposed to it very often, and it does not cause any serious harm to the body. What harm does ammonia do to the human body? Let’s take a look.

After ammonia is inhaled into the lungs, it easily enters the blood through the alveoli, combines with hemoglobin, and destroys its oxygen transport function. Inhaling a large amount of ammonia in a short period of time may cause tearing, sore throat, hoarseness, cough, blood-streaked sputum, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing. It may be accompanied by dizziness, headache, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, etc. In severe cases, pulmonary edema and adult respiratory distress syndrome may occur, and respiratory irritation symptoms may also occur. Therefore, alkaline substances cause deeper and more serious damage to tissues than acidic substances.

Ammonia is a colorless gas with a strong pungent odor. It is lighter than air (specific gravity is 0.5) and the lowest perceptible concentration is 5.3 ppm. Ammonia is an alkaline substance that is corrosive and irritating to skin tissue it comes into contact with. It can absorb moisture in skin tissue, denature tissue protein, saponify tissue fat, and destroy cell membrane structure. Ammonia has an extremely high solubility, so it mainly has an irritating and corrosive effect on the upper respiratory tract of animals or humans, weakening the body's resistance to disease. When the concentration is too high, in addition to the corrosive effect, it can also cause cardiac arrest and respiratory arrest through the reflex action of the trigeminal nerve endings. Ammonia is usually inhaled into the human body in the form of gas. A small part of the ammonia that enters the alveoli is neutralized by carbon dioxide, and the rest is absorbed into the blood. A small amount of ammonia can be excreted from the body with sweat, urine or breathing.

In order to prove the harm and impact of low concentrations of ammonia in the air on human health, experts monitored workers who worked in indoor environments exposed to 3-13 mg/cubic meter of ammonia for 8 hours, with 10 people in each group. Compared with healthy people who were not exposed to ammonia, it was found that people exposed to 13 mg/cubic meter had increased urea and ammonia levels in their urine, and a significant increase in urea in their blood.

In addition, the information provided by experts on the impact of ammonia on chickens in chicken houses can also be used as a reference. Because a large amount of ammonia is produced in chicken manure, when the ammonia in the air of the chicken house reaches 20ppm (equivalent to 15.2mg/cubic meter) and lasts for more than 6 weeks, it will cause congestion and edema in the chickens' lungs, decreased appetite, reduced egg production, and susceptibility to disease. If it reaches 50ppm, the chickens will develop laryngeal edema, necrotizing bronchitis, pulmonary hemorrhage, decreased respiratory rate, and death after a few days. Therefore, the ammonia concentration in the chicken house air is required to be controlled below 20ppm. From this we can see the harm of low-concentration ammonia pollution in indoor air to human health.

The above is an introduction to the harm of ammonia to the human body. In normal times, we must pay attention to minimize contact with such gases. Friends who have been engaged in this work for a long time should take protective measures when in contact. In addition, we should also pay attention as much as possible when fertilizing. Generally, there will be no danger if there is no direct and long-term contact.