Bulk gases

 

Bulk Gases - Argon

Argon is a colourless, odourless, tasteless and non-toxic gas. Applications for argon often utilize its inert properties for protection against the oxidizing effect of air. Argon has also low boiling point and low conductivity properties.

Applications where argon is widely used:

• Heat treatment – as a protective atmosphere for the most reactive metals, where nitrogen could react or needs to be excluded.
• Inerting and purging – for storage vessels and pipelines in chemicals and pharmaceutical plants.
• Metal refining – for degassing and stirring in large volumes to achieve exact composition specification.
• Semiconductor applications – as a protective atmosphere for silicon crystal pulling in wafer manufacture.

Argon has a much higher density than air, which makes it an effective shielding gas for:

• Welding – pure or in mixture to shield the hot molten metal from contamination by the atmosphere.
• Cutting – pure at very high temperature for plasma arc cutting of ferrous and non-ferrous alloys.

Argon has a very low thermal conductivity relative to most other gases. This makes it a useful gas for insulation, e.g. to fill inter-space in double glazed windows.

 

Bulk Gases - Carbon Dioxide

Carbon dioxide is an, odourless, colourless and slightly toxic gas with a slightly pungent, acidic taste. It will not burn or support combustion.

Carbon dioxide has many applications based on its varied properties. It is widely used in food processing for cooling, preservation and pH control. It is also used to blanket chemicals, control of pH in water treatment, as a shield gas in metal welding, to stimulate biological growth and as a fire-extinguishing agent.

Carbon dioxide is used as gas, in liquid and solid form. Its sublimation temperature is -79 ^oC and so dry ice, solid carbon dioxide, will have that temperature before sublimating into gas without passing liquid phase. Carbon dioxide based freezing systems can be designed for a convenient range of temperatures down to -54 ^oC, making it a useful refrigerant for applications such as storage, chilling and freezing of food products.

Carbon dioxide is highly soluble in water at moderate pressure, and in oils and plastics at elevated pressures. This leads to its use in e.g. beverage packaging before closing the containers and to carbonated soft drinks and mineral water.

In its liquid form, carbon dioxide is a selective solvent for a number of substances, and at supercritical pressure it is an even stronger solvent. Its dryness prevents damage to sensitive materials.

Liquid carbon dioxide forms solid dry ice when expanded to atmosphere pressure, which is used at cryocleaning. Small dry ice pellets are blasted with pressurized air at surfaces to be cleaned from oil dust and dirt. The method is also used with ultra high purity carbon dioxide (UHP) to clean optical systems, semiconductor devices and LCD screens.

 

Bulk Gases - Nitrogen

Nitrogen is colourless, odourless and tasteless. It is non-flammable, will not support combustion and is not life-supporting. The gas is slightly lighter than air and is only slightly soluble in water. At low temperatures nitrogen is inert and will not react with other chemicals. When liquid nitrogen is vaporized and then heated it consumes a relatively large amount of heat, making it an ideal coolant for low temperature applications.

Nitrogen has many commercial and technical applications. Liquid nitrogen's cooling properties are used to:

• Freeze food, blood and other materials
• Modify metal properties
• Control reaction temperatures
• Cool concrete and simulate cold operating conditions.

Nitrogen gas is used to blanket, purge or stir chemicals or molten metals. The gas is used to extinguish fires and for freezing of soil. It can also be used to pressurize devices or pneumatically convey chemicals, while keeping out contaminates like oxygen or water.

 

Bulk Gases - Oxygen

Oxygen is a colourless, odourless and tasteless gas that supports life and combustion. All elements, except rare gases, react with oxygen over a wide range of temperatures, to form oxides. Oxygen is 1.1 times heavier than air and is slightly soluble in water. Liquid oxygen is a clear blue liquid.
From a distance the atmosphere around the earth is blue in colour.

The major uses of oxygen are based on its combustion-sustaining; oxidizing and life-supporting attributes. Whether used directly or to enrich combustion air, oxygen is widely used with fuel gases in furnaces, smelters, kilns, welding and metal cutting. Oxygen is used in chemical production as a raw material and in pulp manufacturing as a bleaching agent.

Oxygen is in a key position when aiming for lowering the carbon dioxide content in the atmosphere. The vital thing here will be to capture carbon dioxide from the fume gases at coal fired power plants. Pure oxygen technologies are then needed for technical and economical reasons. Because of this, oxygen production may in the future be increased radically.

Space rockets strong engines operate on fuel and pure oxygen stored in liquid form.

Most importantly, oxygen is used for medical reasons to save and protect life.

 

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