Nitrogen Cycle

- is a biogeochemical process through which nitrogen is converted into many forms,

consecutively passing from the atmosphere to the soil to organism and back into the
atmosphere.

It involves several processes such as nitrogen fixation, nitrification, denitrification, decay and
putrefaction. Nitrogen gas exists in both organic and inorganic forms. Organic nitrogen exists
in living organisms, and they get passed through the food chain by the consumption of other
living organisms. Inorganic forms of nitrogen are found in abundance in the atmosphere. This
nitrogen is made available to plants by symbiotic bacteria which can convert the inert
nitrogen into a usable form – such as nitrites and nitrates.

Nitrogen undergoes various types of transformation to maintain a balance in the ecosystem.

Furthermore, this process extends to various biomes, with the marine nitrogen cycle being
one of the most complicated biogeochemical cycles.

Nitrogen Cycle Explained – Stages of Nitrogen Cycle

Process of the Nitrogen Cycle consists of the following steps – Nitrogen fixation, Nitrification,
Assimilation, Ammonification and Denitrification. These processes take place in several
stages and are explained below:

Nitrogen Fixation Process

- It is the initial step of the nitrogen cycle. Here, Atmospheric nitrogen which is primarily
available in an inert form, is converted into the usable form -ammonia.

During the process of Nitrogen fixation, the inert form of nitrogen gas is deposited into soils
from the atmosphere and surface waters, mainly through precipitation.

The entire process of Nitrogen fixation is completed by symbiotic bacteria, which are known
as Diazotrophs. Azotobacter and Rhizobium also have a major role in this process. These
bacteria consist of a nitrogenase enzyme, which has the capability to combine gaseous
nitrogen with hydrogen to form ammonia.

Nitrogen fixation can occur either by atmospheric fixation- which involves lightening, or
industrial fixation by manufacturing ammonia under high temperature and pressure
conditions. This can also be fixed through man-made processes, primarily industrial processes
that create ammonia and nitrogen-rich fertilisers.
Types of Nitrogen Fixation

1. Atmospheric fixation:

- A natural phenomenon where the energy of lightning breaks the nitrogen into nitrogen
oxides, which are then used by plants.

2. Industrial nitrogen fixation:

- It is a man-made alternative that aids in nitrogen fixation by the use of ammonia. Ammonia
is produced by the direct combination of nitrogen and hydrogen. Later, it is converted into
various fertilisers such as urea.

3. Biological nitrogen fixation:

- We already know that nitrogen is not used directly from the air by plants and animals.
Bacteria like Rhizobium and blue-green algae transform the unusable form of nitrogen into
other compounds that are more readily usable. These nitrogen compounds get fixed in the
soil by these microbes.

Nitrification

- In this process, the ammonia is converted into nitrate by the presence of bacteria in the soil.
Nitrites are formed by the oxidation of ammonia with the help of Nitrosomonas bacteria
species. Later, the produced nitrites are converted into nitrates by Nitrobacter. This
conversion is very important as ammonia gas is toxic for plants.

Assimilation

- Primary producers

plants take in the nitrogen compounds from the soil with the help of their roots, which are
available in the form of ammonia, nitrite ions, nitrate ions or ammonium ions and are used in
the formation of the plant and animal proteins.

Ammonification

When plants or animals die, the nitrogen present in the organic matter is released back into
the soil. The decomposers, namely bacteria or fungi present in the soil, convert the organic
matter back into ammonium. This process of decomposition produces ammonia, which is
further used for other biological processes.
Denitrification

Denitrification is the process in which the nitrogen compounds make their way back into the
atmosphere by converting nitrate (NO3-) into gaseous nitrogen (N). This process of the
nitrogen cycle is the final stage and occurs in the absence of oxygen. Denitrification is carried
out by the denitrifying bacterial species- Clostridium and Pseudomonas, which will process
nitrate to gain oxygen and gives out free nitrogen gas as a by product.

Nitrogen Cycle in Marine Ecosystem

The process of the nitrogen cycle occurs in the same manner in the marine ecosystem as in
the terrestrial ecosystem. The only difference is that it is carried out by marine bacteria.

The nitrogen-containing compounds fall into the ocean as sediments get compressed over
long periods and form sedimentary rock. Due to the geological uplift, these sedimentary rocks
move to land. Initially, it was not known that these nitrogen-containing sedimentary rocks
are an essential source of nitrogen. But, recent researches have proved that the nitrogen
from these rocks is released into the plants due to the weathering of rocks.

Importance of Nitrogen Cycle

The importance of the nitrogen cycle are as follows:

1. Helps plants to synthesise chlorophyll from the nitrogen compounds.

2. Helps in converting inert nitrogen gas into a usable form for the plants through the
biochemical process.
3. In the process of ammonification, the bacteria help in decomposing the animal and
plant matter, which indirectly helps to clean up the environment.
4. Nitrates and nitrites are released into the soil, which helps in enriching the soil with
the necessary nutrients required for cultivation.
5. Nitrogen is an integral component of the cell and it forms many crucial compounds
and important biomolecules.

Nitrogen is also cycled by human activities such as the combustion of fuels and the use of
nitrogen fertilisers. These processes increase the levels of nitrogen-containing compounds in
the atmosphere. The fertilisers containing nitrogen are washed away in lakes, rivers and
result in eutrophication.

Conclusion
Nitrogen is abundant in the atmosphere, but it is unusable to plants or animals unless it is
converted into nitrogen compounds.

Nitrogen-fixing bacteria play a crucial role in fixing atmospheric nitrogen into nitrogen
compounds that can be used by plants.

The plants absorb the usable nitrogen compounds from the soil through their roots. Then,
these nitrogen compounds are used for the production of proteins and other compounds in
the plant cell.

Animals assimilate nitrogen by consuming these plants or other animals that contain
nitrogen. Humans consume proteins from these plants and animals. The nitrogen then
assimilates into our body system.

During the final stages of the nitrogen cycle, bacteria and fungi help decompose organic
matter, where the nitrogenous compounds get dissolved into the soil which is again used by
the plants.

Some bacteria then convert these nitrogenous compounds in the soil and turn it into nitrogen
gas. Eventually, it goes back to the atmosphere.

These sets of processes repeat continuously and thus maintain the percentage of nitrogen in
the atmosphere.