Travis P. Hignett Collection of Fixed Nitrogen Research Laboratory Photographs

The Fixed Nitrogen Research Laboratory (F.N.R.L.) was established at American University in 1919 under the directorship of Arthur B. Lamb. Initially part of the War Department, the F.N.R.L. was the successor to several wartime initiatives to develop a secure domestic supply of nitrate compounds necessary for the manufacture of explosives during World War I. With a staff of about 110 individuals, including 35 to 50 chemists, the F.N.R.L. focused on the manufacture, production, and development of products of atmospheric nitrogen, including munitions and fertilizers. The F.N.R.L effectively laid the foundation for the fertilizer research subsequently undertaken by the Department of Agriculture and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and was most distinguished for improvements to both the catalyst and apparatus used in the synthesis of ammonia. In addition, the F.N.R.L also served as a training school for many industrial chemists, as well as a model for the project-oriented team research that came to characterize industrial chemical research. Following the suspension of the Army's Nitrate Division in 1921, administration of the F.N.R.L transferred to the Department of Agriculture; the F.N.R.L. was eventually absorbed into the Bureau of Soils laboratories in 1926.

Known as the "Father of Fertilizer Technology," Travis P. Hignett (1907-1989) was a distinguished chemist, chemical technologist, and author who worked in fertilizer research at the F.N.R.L. before joining the TVA in 1938. Hignett spent thirty-five years at the TVA and later served as a consultant to the International Fertilizer Development Center in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Over the course of his career, Hignett was credited with fifteen patents and was the recipient of numerous awards, most notably the Francis New Memorial Medal from the Fertiliser Society of London.