Argon

Oxygen

Argon is a chemical element with symbol Ar and atomic number 18. It is in group 18 of the periodic table and is a noble gas. Argon is the third most common gas in the Earth's atmosphere, at 0.93% (9,300 ppm), making it approximately 23.8 times as abundant as the next most common atmospheric gas, carbon dioxide (390 ppm), and more than 500 times as abundant as the next most common noble gas, neon (18 ppm). Nearly all of this argon is radiogenic argon-40derived from the decay of potassium-40 in the Earth's crust. In the universe, argon-36 is by far the most common argonisotope, being the preferred argon isotope produced by stellar nucleosynthesis in supernovas.
There are several different reasons argon is used in particular applications:
@ An inert gas is needed. In particular, argon is the cheapest alternative when nitrogen is not sufficiently inert.
6) Low thermal conductivity is required.
© The electronic properties (ionization and/or the emission spectrum) are necessary.
Other noble gases would probably work as well in most of these applications, but argon is by far the cheapest. Argon is inexpensive since it occurs naturally in air, and is readily obtained as a byproduct of cryogenic air separation in the production of liquid oxygen and liquid nitrogen: the primary constituents of air are used on a large industrial scale. The other noble gases (except helium) are produced this way as well, but argon is the most plentiful by far. The bulk of argon applications arise simply because it is inert and relatively cheap.
Argon is used in some high-temperature industrial processes, where ordinarily non-reactive substances become reactive. For example, an argon atmosphere is used in graphite electric furnaces to prevent the graphite from burning.
For some of these processes, the presence of nitrogen or oxygen gases might cause defects within the material. Argon is used in various types of arc welding such as gas metal arc welding and gas tungsten arc welding as well as in the processing of titanium and other reactive elements. An argon atmosphere is also used for growing crystals of silicon and germanium.
Argon is used in the poultry industry to asphyxiate birds, either for mass culling following disease outbreaks, or as a means of slaughter more humane than the electric bath. Argon's relatively high density causes it to remain dose to the ground during gassing. Its non-reactive nature makes it suitable in a food product, and since it replaces oxygen within the dead bird, argon also enhances shelf life.
Argon is sometimes used for extinguishing fires where damage to equipment is to be avoided.

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