Applications of Noble Gases

The more important applications of noble gases are listed in Table 2.3 

Neon In neon lamps (has a characteristic red glow). Neon mixed with argon or mercury can also be used (the colour of light produced varies from green to dark blue). In electronics for filling voltage stabilisers, photoelectric cells etc.. 

Krypton In high efficiency filament lamps, in coloured display lamps 

Xenon In high light intensity photographic flash tubes. 

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Herzberg, O. and Mazor, E. (1979) Hydrological applications of noble gases and temperature measurements in underground water systems, examples from Israel. J. of Hydrology 41, 217-231. 

We review here selected case studies to illustrate some of the main applications of noble gases to natural gas and oil-bearing systems. 

Apart from lakes and ground water, noble gases are also useful in the study of other continental water reservoirs, such as pore waters in sediments and rocks. However, little work has been done in these areas so far. The one aqueous system that has received considerable attention in recent years is ice. The polar ice sheets have proven to be excellent archives of past environmental conditions, and noble gases as conservative tracers play a role in extracting information from these archives. A short review of recent applications of noble gases in ice is therefore included at the end of this chapter. 

The possibility to derive paleotemperature records from dissolved noble gases in ground water, on the basis of the temperature dependency of their solubilities in water, is probably the application of noble gases in subsurface hydrology that received most attention in recent years. A large number of ground-water studies over the past 40 years used this approach to reconstruct paleoclimate conditions. 

Noble gases are widely used in studies of the basic properties and dynamics of natural systems including the ocean. This chapter describes some of the more extensive applications of noble gases (mainly helium isotopes) to studies of oceanographic problems. They include the modem oceanic circulation, paleo-oceanography, hydro-thermal and cold brine systems in the deep ocean, and ocean/atmosphere gas exchange. 

At first, noble gas chemistry had almost no practical applications. Recently, however, lasers have been developed that are based on the chemical reactions of noble gases. 

Lux G. (1987). The behavior of noble gases in silicate liquids Solution, diffusion, bubbles and surface effects, with application to natural samples. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 51 1549-1560. 

Since their discovery more than a century ago, the unique properties of the noble gases have been the subject of much research in theoretical chemistry and physics. These gases have also found many applications as tools for scientific research and many commercial, industrial, and even medical applications as well. These uses are well known, and our further discussion will focus on the role of noble gases in geochemistry. 

Noble gases have been firmly established as routine tools in studies of a variety of oceanographic fields. Since the first pioneering measurements of noble gases in the ocean and its sedimentary environment, rich data sets, some of them with global coverage at high spatial resolution, were collected and evaluated. In many cases such as the application of tritium/ He and mantle He to ocean circulation, detailed descriptions of... 

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