Ammonia is oxidized with air to form nitric oxide in the first step of the production of nitric acid. Two principal gas-phase reactions occur:

4NH₃(g)  + 5O₂(g)  →  4NO(g)  +  6H₂O

2NO(g) + O₂(g) → 2 NO₂

Explanation:

First of all, we need to consider the reaction for production of ammonia. In this reaction we have as reactants, nitrogen and hydroge.

3H₂ (g) +  N₂(g)  →  2NH₃ (g)

Afterwards, ammonia reacts to oxygen, to produce NO and H₂O

The equation for the process will be:

4NH₃(g)  + 5O₂(g)  →  4NO(g)  +  6H₂O

Then, we take the nitric oxide to make it react, to produce NO₂, in order to produce nitric acid, for the final reaction:

2NO(g) + O₂(g) → 2 NO₂

3NO₂(g) + H₂O(g) → 2 HNO₃ (g) + NO(g)

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