Mechano-chemical synthesis of ammonia and acetic acid from inorganic materials in water

Abstract A mechano-chemical reaction formed by a simple high-energy ball milling was applied to simulate the synthesis of ammonia and organic precursors from common inorganic materials that occurred on early Earth. By milling for 0.5–64 h at centrifugal accelerations of 20–150 G, ammonia and acetic acid were produced from inorganic materials, such as iron nitride, nitrate, carbide, and carbonates, in water. The experimental results can offer waste processing of metallic acids by the mechanical method without using any alkaline sources and suggest that the high-energy milling technology provides a new synthesis mode to form wide ranges of organic materials and scope for broader applications. This study also offers a new route to the formation of the precursors on early Earth and proposes that tremors and friction initiate micro-impacts between rocks and sand in the terrestrial crust, resulting in the formation of ammonia and organic materials from inorganic materials.