Xenon is a noble gas found in trace amounts in the atmosphere and minerals. It is expensive but has practical applications, such as in flash lamps for photography. Xenon was discovered in 1898 and is less reactive than other noble gases. It can be extracted through fractional distillation and used in lighting and useful compounds.
Xenon is a chemical element classified among the noble gases. Like other noble gases, it appears in trace amounts in the earth’s atmosphere and is also present in various minerals and some compounds. As xenon is quite expensive, it is not widely used, although there are a number of practical applications for the element. Many people are familiar with xenon because it is used in flash lamps for photography.
The discovery of noble gases and their properties was a long process. It began with Henry Cavendish, who realized in the 1700s that, in addition to nitrogen and oxygen, air contains an additional fraction. Experiments on this fraction eventually yielded an assortment of so-called “noble gases,” which were initially thought to be extremely rare. In fact, some noble gases exist in great abundance both on Earth and in the universe at large.
Xenon was discovered in 1898 by Morris William Travers and William Ramsay. The two men also identified krypton and neon at the same time. The name “xenon” is taken from the Greek xenos, which means “foreign or strange”, while krypton is taken from the word “hidden” and neon means “new”. It is assumed that all these names are references to how difficult it was to isolate and describe these elements.
In gaseous form, xenon is odorless and colorless. The gas is identified by the symbol Xe on the period table and its atomic number is 54. Like other noble gases, xenon is relatively stable, although it is less reactive than some noble gases. It appears in a number of compounds, some of which become toxic through oxidation, and when exposed to electricity, xenon turns a distinctive deep blue. Like other noble gases, xenon will act as an asphyxiant in large concentrations. It will also cause someone’s voice to swell when inhaled, although this can be dangerous and is not recommended.
In addition to appearing in the atmosphere and in some minerals, xenon can also be found in the gases surrounding hot springs. To extract xenon for commercial use, companies use fractional distillation. Fractional distillation involves cooling air until it converts to a liquid state and then capturing each element as it heats up enough to return to a gaseous state. Since different elements convert at different temperatures, the distillation process neatly separates all the component elements. Once extracted, xenon can be used in lighting or in the formation of useful compounds and isotopes.
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