Direct Hazards of Ammonia to the Human Body
Strong Corrosiveness and Irritation: Ammonia has strong corrosive properties and will cause corrosion and irritation when it comes into contact with human skin tissue. After inhaling ammonia, the throat and mouth will experience obvious discomfort. More dangerously, ammonia can easily enter the bloodstream through the alveoli in the lungs, combining with hemoglobin in the blood and disrupting the body’s normal oxygen transport function.
Acute Poisoning Symptoms and Fatal Risks: Inhaling large amounts of ammonia in a short period of time can cause symptoms such as tearing, sore throat, hoarseness, coughing, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing. In severe cases, it can lead to pulmonary edema and even sudden death.
Negative Impacts of Ammonia on Livestock and Poultry Farming: Ammonia in farms mainly comes from the decomposition process of livestock and poultry manure, urine, and feed residue. Its presence can cause various harms to livestock production.
Respiratory System Damage: Ammonia can irritate the respiratory mucosa of livestock and poultry, leading to symptoms such as coughing and wheezing. Prolonged exposure to high concentrations of ammonia in livestock and poultry can cause continuous damage to the respiratory mucosa, significantly increasing the incidence of respiratory diseases.
Eye health threats: Ammonia irritates the eyes of livestock and poultry, potentially causing symptoms such as tearing and eye swelling, and in severe cases, keratitis and other eye diseases. For young livestock and poultry, eye irritation can also affect visual development, and in extreme cases, lead to blindness.
Decreased immunity: Livestock and poultry exposed to ammonia for extended periods experience a significant reduction in their immunity, becoming less resistant to disease and more susceptible to bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections. This not only increases breeding costs but also raises breeding risks.
Deteriorating growth performance: Ammonia affects the appetite and feed intake of livestock and poultry, leading to slower growth and weight loss. Simultaneously, ammonia reduces feed conversion ratios, directly impacting breeding efficiency.
Multiple Hazards of Ammonia Leaks
Rapid Vaporization and Diffusion, Expanding the Danger Zone: When ammonia leaks, it transforms from a liquid to a gaseous state. Liquid ammonia rapidly vaporizes and expands significantly in volume. Incompletely vaporized liquid ammonia atomizes as droplets in the vapor. In the initial stages of a leak, due to partial evaporation of liquid ammonia, the density of the ammonia vapor cloud is higher than that of air. Driven by wind, it spreads easily, easily forming large-scale toxic areas and potential flammable and explosive zones.
High Toxicity Leading to Injuries and Fatalities: Ammonia is toxic, irritating, and has a foul odor; it is also highly volatile. Once leaked into the atmosphere and spreading over a certain area, it can cause acute poisoning and burns.
Flammable Properties Causing Explosions: Ammonia is not only toxic but also a flammable gas. When the ammonia concentration in the air reaches 11%-14%, it will ignite upon contact with an open flame, producing a yellow-green flame. The presence of oily substances in the environment further increases the risk of combustion.
Environmental pollution and ecological harm: Ammonia leaks pollute the air. Driven by wind, the toxic gas can spread over a wide area, harming humans and livestock. If large amounts of liquid ammonia leak into rivers, lakes, and reservoirs, it will cause water pollution; in severe cases, the polluted water may become unusable without treatment.
Secondary accidents are likely: Ammonia is chemically unstable and decomposes when heated. It reacts violently with substances such as fluorine and chlorine. In high-temperature environments, the internal pressure of ammonia storage containers increases, potentially leading to container rupture or even explosion.
High technical difficulty in emergency response: Ammonia is usually stored in containers by converting it from a gaseous to a liquid state through pressurization or cooling. Due to variations in storage methods, container pressure, leak location, and rupture size, emergency measures such as plugging and transferring ammonia require advanced technical expertise, making the overall response quite challenging.
Prevention measures for ammonia leaks:
Use qualified equipment to eliminate potential hazards at the source: Using equipment that meets safety standards is fundamental to preventing liquid ammonia leaks. After the installation of pipelines, tanks, tank trucks, and other equipment for the production, storage, and transportation of liquid ammonia is completed, they must undergo joint acceptance by the public security fire department, safety management department, and the design and installation unit. Only after passing the acceptance inspection can they be put into use.
Strictly control the filling volume to avoid explosion risks: Overfilling of liquid ammonia is prohibited. If the filling volume exceeds the standard, the tank will be completely filled with liquid at a specific temperature. Due to the low compressibility of liquids, the pressure on the tank walls will increase sharply when the temperature rises, easily leading to damage to pressurized components and causing leakage accidents.
Scientific storage to ensure environmental safety: Given the hazardous nature of ammonia, production and user units must attach great importance to the storage and transportation of ammonia. Ammonia should be stored in cool, ventilated warehouses, away from fire and heat sources, and protected from direct sunlight. During storage, ammonia must be stored separately from oxygen, fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, and acids; when handling bottled liquid ammonia, handle it with care to prevent damage to the cylinders and valves.
Strengthen equipment inspection and maintenance to prevent problems before they occur: Relevant enterprises must regularly conduct pressure resistance tests and airtightness tests on equipment used for the production, storage, and transportation of liquid ammonia. They must also perform daily inspections and maintenance, addressing any problems promptly to avoid accidents.
Install monitoring equipment for real-time early warning: Install ammonia alarms in workshops or warehouses where ammonia is produced or stored, and equip vehicles transporting liquid ammonia with portable ammonia detectors. Real-time monitoring of ammonia concentration allows for timely detection of potential leaks and effectively prevents accidents.
Correct Installation Method for Ammonia Detectors
Installation Location and Height: Because ammonia is less dense than air, ammonia detectors should be installed 0.5 to 2 meters above the potential leak point, with the sensor facing downwards to ensure accurate detection of ammonia leaks.
Prohibited Installation Areas
① Locations directly affected by steam or fumes;
② Areas with strong airflow, such as near air vents, exhaust fans, or doors;
③ Environments with high moisture content and relative humidity ≥90%;
④ Locations with temperatures below -20℃ or above 50℃;
⑤ Areas with strong electromagnetic interference.
