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Chemistry Facts

What Give Batteries Their Charge?

There is in chemistry only one function that is of fundamental importance: the ability of atoms to share electrons. In any such sharing program, there must be electron donors and electron acceptors. ... Continue reading

Exploding Fertilizer

Atmospheric nitrogen is a diatomic molecule of just two nitrogen atoms bonded very strongly to each other. Nitrogen, in compound with other elements, is just a single nitrogen atom bonded very weakly, ... Continue reading

Crops benefit from nitrogen-based fertilizers as in this field of safflower, Carthamus tinctorius L.

Why Does Cement Set?

Concrete has been known for literally thousands of years. It is a testament to the enduring strength of this material that concrete structures from those long-ago times are still standing strong ... Continue reading

Image of microstucture predicted from a NIST-developed model of cement hydration.

Turning Oil Into Gas

When you see all those cars at the gas station filling up with unleaded, you may not stop to think about how that gasoline got there. It wasn't pumped out of the ground in that form. The same goes for ... Continue reading