# The greenhouse gas you don’t know about

- Show: [Catalyst](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst)
- Published: 2023-03-16
- Length: 45m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about

## Summary

Eric Davidson, professor at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science and principal scientist at Spark Climate Solutions, explains that nitrous oxide (N2O) is the third most potent anthropogenic greenhouse gas, with a global warming potential 275-300 times that of CO2 and a long atmospheric residence time. He details how the Haber-Bosch process for synthetic fertilizer production and its subsequent application to soil have disrupted the natural nitrogen cycle, making agriculture the primary source of rising N2O emissions. Davidson discusses mitigation strategies ranging from optimizing fertilizer timing and the '4 R's' of application to disruptive innovations like direct nitrogen feed additives for livestock and nitrogen-efficient crop breeding.

## Chapters

- [0:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about#t=2) Introduction to Nitrous Oxide and its Climate Impact
- [13:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about#t=789) Historical Context and the Haber-Bosch Process
- [24:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about#t=1440) Agriculture as the Primary Source of N2O Emissions
- [29:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about#t=1758) Mitigation via Green Ammonia and Application Timing
- [33:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about#t=2022) The Economics of Fertilizer Use and the '4 R's'
- [40:48](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about#t=2448) Disruptive Solutions: Livestock Feed and Crop Breeding

## Topics

- [Energy & climate tech](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/energy-and-climate-tech)
- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)

## Most relevant to

large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Spark Climate Solutions (company)
- University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (company)
- Haber-Bosch process (other)
- EnergyHub (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Using Methane-Eating Bacteria to Combat Climate Change: A Discussion with Josh Silverman, CEO at Windfall Bio](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-12-07-using-methane-eating-bacteria-to-combat-climate-change-a-discussion-with-josh-si) (Hardware to Save a Planet)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-03-16-the-greenhouse-gas-you-dont-know-about. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Catalyst.