SIC 2873 Nitrogenous Fertilizers

Contenidos

• NAICS CODE(S).
• FURTHER READING.

SIC 2873

This category includes establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing nitrogenous fertilizer materials or mixed fertilizers from nitrogenous materials produced in the same establishment.

NAICS CODE(S)

325311

Nitrogenous Fertilizer Manufacturing

After a stagnant and declining period in the late 1990s through the early 2000s, industry shipments rose steadily from $3.56 billion in 2002 to $5.30 billion in 2005. The cost of materials was $2.9 billion in 2005.

Employment fell from 4,760 in 2002 to 3,462 in 2005. The industry's 2,264 production workers earned an average hourly wage of $32.17 in 2005. About 72 percent of the establishments in this category had 20 or fewer employees in the mid-2000s.

The main source of nitrogen for fertilizer production is atmospheric nitrogen, of which there is abundant supply; it has been estimated that there are about 35,000 tons of nitrogen over every acre of land. For plants to utilize this element, however, it must first be combined with either oxygen or hydrogen in a process called "fixation."

The primary ingredient of most nitrogenous fertilizers is anhydrous ammonia, which the fertilizer industry typically forms by fixing atmospheric nitrogen with the hydrogen found in the natural gas methane. The resultant compound is a gas that is 82.25 percent nitrogen. This gas is stored in containers that are pressurized and usually refrigerated. It may be injected beneath the soil surface as a fertilizer. In 1992 natural gas prices shot upward and accounted for 70 percent to 85 percent of ammonia production costs. This put the United States at a cost disadvantage compared to countries such as Russia, Canada, and Mexico, which have abundant and lower-priced sources of natural gas.

Anhydrous ammonia may be combined with nitric acid to produce ammonium nitrate, an excellent fertilizer that is highly combustible. A third type of fertilizer, urea, can be made by combining anhydrous ammonia with carbon dioxide. Urea has a higher nitrogen content and is easier and safer to store and handle than ammonium nitrate. Some nitrogenous fertilizer materials are made from organic substances such as sewage sludge.

The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that in 2005, the industry shipped $3.95 billion worth of synthetic ammonia, nitric acid, and ammonium compounds. Shipments of urea totaled $1.02 billion, and shipments of nitrogenous fertilizer materials of organic origin totaled $162...