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• nitrogen is a colourless, odourless gas that is insoluble in water.
• it is a diatomic gas, N₂.
• it is an unreactive gas. This is because it has a triplecovalent bond between the nitrogen atoms in N₂ molecules. This strong triple bond requires substantial energy to break before the nitrogen atoms can react with other atoms.
• nitrogen gas is difficult to notice – it’s colourless, odourless and insoluble in water.
• its structure is two nitrogen atoms joined by a triple covalent bond. This means it is diatomic.
• the triple covalent bond is very strong, and a great deal of energy is required to break it.
• the bond needs to be broken before nitrogen will react with other atoms.

Uses of nitrogen

We use nitrogen in two ways:

• liquid nitrogen is very cold and makes a good coolant.
• nitrogen gas provides an inert atmosphere in food packaging, helping to keep the contents fresh.