Nium - The History of Ammonia
Raising awareness about the issues of our time and green ammonia’s role in solving them in 150 seconds
1860 was a pivotal year for us all. It was the year that Fritz Haber developed the Haber-Bosch process and gave people across the world the ammonia they needed to enrich soil and prevent a global food crisis. But as we face the twin challenges of feeding eight billion people and tackling climate change, we need a new approach, and Nium has the solution! Nium has developed a way to create fossil fuel-free ammonia! We created an explainer video for Nium to share this incredible breakthrough.
The brief
Ammonia may be the key to feeding the world, but it’s not a subject you’ll hear in everyday conversation. The first part of our challenge was to change this. Our whiteboard animation needed to tell people about the story of ammonia and make people care.
The second part of the brief was raising awareness about Nium and bringing the story up to date by explaining current issues around population growth and climate change, and the way Nium’s revolutionary technology solves these.
The animation
After an introduction to Nium and the purpose guiding their work, our explainer video gave audiences a quick and engaging history lesson on ammonia and the global food crisis we faced before the development of the Haber-Bosch process. To do this, our creative team used an emotive script and highly relatable illustrations, including a globe that opened up to reveal an empty fridge, to bring to life the food crisis and work of Fritz Haber.
History lesson complete, our whiteboard animation brought viewers firmly into the present and vividly brought to life the climate changing pollution caused by the Haber-Bosch process. Our team delivered clear information and shocking stats through easily graspable comparisons and visual thinking like an arrow made polluting gases to reflect the increase in pollution and deliver information. This approach allowed us to highlight the problems we face and connect audiences with the potential real-world consequences for us.
This was the perfect narrative backdrop to return to Nium’s work, and we entered the final act of our story by sharing the crucial contribution Nium’s innovation will make to our lives and the planet. Accurate yet engaging visual thinking allowed us explain elements like the nano catalyst, in an accessible and understandable way.
Finishing with one clear message that tied together the narrative, we left viewers aware of the need for clean ammonia and the pivotal role Nium are playing in its production.
The Client
Formed by nanoscientist Dr Yubiao Niu, entrepreneur Lewis Jenkins and engineer Phil Hunter, Nium are working towards the goals of removing 10 million tonnes of CO2e a year by 2030. Their nanotechnology synthesises ammonia using 16% less energy than the current process.
The context
Find out more about Nium and the future of green ammonia by visiting their website.
To turn your complex idea into a whiteboard animation, contact us or book a creative consultation today.
