History of the Haber Process

Monitoring and Management‎ > ‎2. Maximising Production‎ > ‎

Gather and process information from secondary sources to describe the conditions under which Haber developed the industrial synthesis of ammonia and evaluate its significance at that time in world history

• The Haber process is named after its developer, German chemist Fritz Haber (1868-1934).
• Haber developed the process at the beginning of the twentieth century, leading up to the First World War.
• At this time, nations such as Germany imported the nitrates that they required for fertilisers and explosives from South America.
• Growing world populations were placing strains on this natural source.
• Furthermore, in Germany, growing militancy was promoting calls for more explosives, creating further demand for natural nitrate resources.
• In 1908, Haber first developed a catalytic method of synthesising ammonia from its elements.
• By 1914, German chemical engineer Carl Bosch had assisted Haber in converting the method into an industrial process.
• During the First World War, British naval blockades prevented most of the South American nitrates from reaching Germany.
• The Haber process allowed the production of fertilisers and explosives to continue in Germany.
• The food and munitions that the Haber process allowed to be produced sustained Germany’s war effort and prolonged the war.

Fritz Haber