nutrient cycles

High School honors biology midterm nutrient cycle terms Carbon Nitrogen Water

condensation

water gas turning into liquid

evaporation

turning liquid water into gas

precipitation

rain snow sleet or hail that falls to the ground

runoff

the draining away from water from the surface of an area of land

groundwater

water held underground or in holes of a rock

transpiration

the evaporation of water off of a plant

photosynthesis

when plants use sunlight to synthesize foods out of carbon dioxide and water

respiration

when living things take in oxygen to make energy and release carbon dioxide

combustion

the burning of fossil fuels

sedimentation

when animals decompose, they have stores carbon that eventually forms rocks and minerals

extraction

extracting fossil fuels from the ground to burn them

nitrogen fixation

the process that converts nitrogen in the atmosphere to a form (ammonia) that plants can absorb through their roots

nitrification

the process that converts ammonia to nitrite

denitrification

the process that converts nitrate from soil or water into nitrogen gas that releases into the atmosphere

anammox

a reaction that oxidizes ammonia to dinitrogen gas using nitrogen as the electron acceptor

ammonification

the process where microscopic organisms like bacteria or other types of decomposing organisms, break down nitrogen-containing chemicals from dead organic matter, into simple substances like ammonia

assimilation

the process by which nitrogen enters plants and can be used to create biomolecules, like proteins and nucleic acids

N2

dinitrogen

NH4

ammonium ion

NH3

ammonia gas

NO2

nitrogen dioxide

NO3

nitrate (used for plant growth)