Biogas During storage and when manure has been applied to the land, nitrous oxide is also produced as a byproduct of the denitrification process. Nitrous oxide () is 320 times more aggressive as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide and methane 25 times more than carbon dioxide. By converting cow manure into methane biogas via anaerobic digestion, the millions of cattle in the United States would be able to produce 100 billion kiloWatt hours of electricity, enough to power millions of homes across the United States. In fact, one cow can produce enough manure in one day to generate 3 kiloWatt
Nitrous oxide because has a very short duration under normal circumstances, it is less likely to be neurotoxic than other NMDA antagonists. Indeed, in rodents, short-term exposure results in only mild injury that is rapidly reversible, and neuronal death occurs only after constant and sustained exposure. Nitrous oxide also may cause neurotoxicity after extended exposure because of hypoxia. This is especially true of non-medical formulations such as whipped-cream chargers (also known as "whippets" or "nangs"), which never contain oxygen, since oxygen makes cream rancid. Additionally, nitrous oxide depletes vitamin B levels. This can cause serious neurotoxicity if the user has preexisting vitamin