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Q:
What is the difference between nitrogen atom and nitrogen molecule
- Brian Roach (age 12)
Roy H Mann, Brooklyn, N.Y
A:
Brian -
A
nitrogen atom is one atom by itself. A nitrogen molecule is two nitrogen atoms stuck together by what’s called a ’covalent bond’. They are bound together so tightly that it is VERY difficult to separate them, except in certain chemical reactions. It is much easier for nitrogen to be bound to another atom in a molecule than to be separate, so you rarely find free nitrogen atoms.
-Tamara
(published on 10/22/2007)
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