Nitro-Charged Cold Brew Coffee: Nitrogen enhances the quality of the coffee.
After conducting fieldwork and measuring N2O gas emissions, I stopped by a cafeteria called Espresso Royale Krannert View. This cafeteria is located on campus and is an easy spot to grab a coffee to go.
I saw a panel advertising Nitro-Charged Cold Brew Coffee, and it was particularly interesting because I had just finished measuring N2O gas.
Do you know why they mentioned N7 in the panel?
It’s because the atomic number of nitrogen is 7.
The fact that the atomic number of nitrogen is 7 means that it also has 7 protons.
Atoms are electrically neutral, meaning that typically the number of protons and electrons in an atom is the same. Therefore, nitrogen would have seven electrons orbiting its atomic nucleus.
The electron configuration of nitrogen is represented as 1s2 2s2 2p3. This means that in the first electron shell of nitrogen, there are two electrons, and in the second electron shell, there are five electrons. The electrons in the second electron shell would occupy both the s orbital (spherical shape) and the p orbitals (dumbbell shape).
Thus, a simplified representation of nitrogen’s atom and electron configuration would be as follows:
In the atmosphere, nitrogen exists in the form of N2, where two nitrogen atoms are combined. It was mentioned that nitrogen has 5 electrons in its outermost electron shell. When two nitrogen atoms bond, three electrons from each atom’s outermost shell form pairs and are shared with each other.
This is called a covalent bond. And because there are 3 electron pairs being shared, it is referred to as a triple bond. This bond is quite stable and strong.Crops are unable to break the covalent bond of nitrogen themselves in order to directly absorb it. Furthermore, no aboveground organ of the crop can directly utilize atmospheric nitrogen. The root is the only organ capable of absorbing nitrogen, and it does so in the form of ions, transporting them throughout the crop.
How about humans consuming nitrogen?
As mentioned earlier, nitrogen (N2) has a very strong covalent bond, making it one of the most stable and unreactive molecules. So, if we drink nitrogen-charged coffee, can we digest nitrogen, unlike crops which can’t absorb nitrogen directly?
For humans, digesting nitrogen is not correct term. When we drink nitrogen-charged coffee, we are not “digesting” nitrogen in the way we digest food. The nitrogen is infused into the coffee in the form of tiny bubbles. When poured, these bubbles give the coffee a creamy texture, and when we drink the coffee, we’re also consuming these tiny nitrogen bubbles.
The nitrogen does not get “digested” in our stomach. Instead, the majority of it is simply exhaled. Our atmosphere is about 78% nitrogen, so every time we breathe in and out, we’re inhaling and exhaling nitrogen.
The nitrogen in coffee is considered safe to consume in the amounts present in the drink. It doesn’t react with the body and is simply expelled when you exhale. In summary, while nitrogen is a very stable molecule due to its strong covalent bond, it’s not something the body processes or attempts to ‘digest.’ Instead, it’s inhaled and exhaled as part of normal respiration. The presence of nitrogen in coffee primarily affects its texture and presentation, rather than having any nutritional or chemical interaction with the body.
