ammonification

[uh-mon-uh-fi-key-shuhn, uh-moh-nuh-]

noun

1. the act of impregnating with ammonia, as in the manufacture of fertilizer.

2. the state of being so impregnated.

3. the formation of ammonia or its compounds by decomposition of organic matter.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ammonification¹

First recorded in 1885–90; ammoni(a) + -fication

Example Sentences

They have power to convert organic nitrogen into ammonia nitrogen; that is, into the compound of nitrogen and hydrogen; and this step in the process is called ammonification.

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In ammonification the carbon is separated or divorced from the nitrogen and united with oxygen.

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Technically the last two steps in the process are nitrification proper; but, speaking generally, the term nitrification is used to include the three steps, or both ammonification and nitrification proper.

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