• Why Nitrogen?
  • → The greatest contributor to plant growth…
  • Haber-Bosch Process (the world’s greatest “fix”)
    • The German skill remained a secret → other countries developed their own way of synthesis
• Pre-war Japan: modernizing the soil through agricultural chemistry
  • analyzing the N, P, K components of the Meiji Japanese soil
  • utilized Manchurian soybean cake
    • ← problem with importation remains
• Post-WW1 Japan: the TKS東工式 process was developed
  • overproduction of fertilizers in the US and Europe → sold to Japan
    • Japan became the greatest demander for German fertilizers
  • Nippon Chisso develops hydropower stations → expands to Korea (Chosen Chisso)
• by the end of 1930s, Japan became the largest ammonia sulfate supplier (surpassing Germany)
• Post-WW2: Korea and Taiwan had to import Japanese fertilizers
  • Japan had to export surplus at such a low cost that it hurt the national economy
• excess N stays within the soil → pollutes the rivers
  • “green ammonia” - producing fertilizers via renewable hydropower
    • Prof. Mizuno - this def. makes Nippon Chisso the pioneer of “green ammonia” (problematic!)