Neon

Neon

Statistics of Neon

Neon is a Chemical Element with an

Atomic Number : 10

Atomic Mass: 20.1797 Atomic Mass Units 
Atomic Symbol: Ne
Melting Point: -248.59 °C

Boiling Point: -246.08°C

Period Number: 2

Valence Electrons: 8
Phase of Neon at room temperature: Gas
Group: Noble Gas
Group Number: 18

Density: 0.0009 g/cm³ 

Isotopes: Neon-20 (²⁰Ne), Neon-21 (²¹Ne), Neon-22 (²²Ne)

Allotropes: None
% in Universe: 0.13%

% in Sun: 0.1%

% in Meteorites: N/A

% in Earth's Crust: 3×10^-7% 

% in Oceans: 1.2×10^-8%

% in Humans: N/A

Neon (Greek νέον (néon), neuter singular form of νέος meaning "new"), was discovered in 1898 by the British chemists Sir William Ramsay (1852–1916) and Morris W. Travers (1872–1961) in London, England. Neon was discovered when Ramsay chilled a sample of air until it became a liquid, then warmed the liquid and captured the gases as they boiled off. The gases nitrogen, oxygen, and argon had been identified, but the remaining gases were isolated in roughly their order of abundance, in a six-week period beginning at the end of May 1898. First to be identified was krypton. The next, after krypton had been removed, was a gas which gave a brilliant red light under spectroscopic discharge. This gas, identified in June, was named neon, the Greek analogue of "novum", (new), the name Ramsay's son suggested.^[13] The characteristic brilliant red-orange color that is emitted by gaseous neon when excited electrically was noted immediately; Travers later wrote, "the blaze of crimson light from the tube told its own story and was a sight to dwell upon and never forget." Finally, the same team discovered xenon by the same process, in June.

Neon's scarcity precluded its prompt application for lighting along the lines of Moore tubes, which used nitrogen and which were commercialized in the early 1900s. After 1902, Georges Claude's company, Air Liquide, was producing industrial quantities of neon as a byproduct of his air liquefaction business. In December 1910 Claude demonstrated modern neon lighting based on a sealed tube of neon. Claude tried briefly to get neon tubes to be used for indoor lighting, due to their intensity, but failed, as homeowners rejected neon light sources due to their color. Finally in 1912, Claude's associate began selling neon discharge tubes as advertising signs, where they were instantly more successful as eye catchers. They were introduced to the U.S. in 1923, when two large neon signs were bought by a Los Angeles Packard car dealership. The glow and arresting red color made neon advertising completely different from the competition.

Neon played a role in the basic understanding of the nature of atoms in 1913, when J. J. Thomson, as part of his exploration into the composition of canal rays, channeled streams of neon ions through a magnetic and an electric field and measured their deflection by placing a photographic plate in their path. Thomson observed two separate patches of light on the photographic plate (see image), which suggested two different parabolas of deflection. Thomson eventually concluded that some of the atoms in the neon gas were of higher mass than the rest. Though not understood at the time by Thomson, this was the first discovery of isotopes of stable atoms. It was made by using a crude version of an instrument we now term as a mass spectrometer.

Importance of Neon

Neon, electrically charged in tubes, form orange, red, yellow, white or blue lights which light up places which are dark. Other than that, Neon has no more importance to humans or the environment.The color of the light depends on the gas in the tube. Neon lights were named for neon, a noble gas which gives off a popular orange light, but other gases and chemicals are used to produce other colors, such as hydrogen (red), helium (yellow), carbon dioxide (white), and mercury (blue).

Bad Effects of Neon

Routes of exposure: The substance can be absorbed into the body by inhalation. 
Inhalation risk: On loss of containment this liquid evaporates very quickly causing supersaturation of the air with serious risk of suffocation when in confined areas. 
Effects of exposure: Inhalation: Simple asphyxiant. Skin: On contact with liquid: frostbite. Eyes: On contact with liquid: frostbite. 
Inhalation: This gas is inert and is classified as a simple asphyxiant. Inhalation in excessive concentrations can result in dizziness, nausea, vomiting, loss of consciousness, and death. Death may result from errors in judgment, confusion, or loss of consciousness which prevent self-rescue. At low oxygen concentrations, unconsciousness and death may occur in seconds without warning. 
The effect of simple asphyxiant gases is proportional to the extent to which they diminish the amount (partial pressure) of oxygen in the air that is breathed. The oxygen may be diminished to 75% of it's normal percentage in air before appreciable symptoms develop. This in turn requires the presence of a simple asphyxiant in a concentration of 33% in the mixture of air and gas. When the simple asphyxiant reaches a concentration of 50%, marked symptoms can be produced. A concentration of 75% is fatal in a matter of minutes. 
Symptoms: The first symptoms produced by a simple asphyxiant are rapid respirations and air hunger. Mental alertness is diminished and muscular coordination is impaired. Later judgment becomes faulty and all sensations are depressed. Emotional instability often results and fatigue occurs rapidly. As the asphyxia progresses, there may be nausea and vomiting, prostration and loss of consciousness, and finally convulsions, deep coma and death.

Experiment

Want to see a cool experiment on neon? Click on the link to see the cool experiment.

Wasn't that awesome! Helium, and Neon, which are relatively unreactive elements, can make a laser!

How Neon is used and The History of Neon

Its most common application is in advertisement. Neon generates a bright reddish orange color. Neon lights refer to various colors and lights. However, neon lights come from other gases and not necessarily neon. The element is also used in helium neon lasers, television tubes and wave meter tubes. It is also used in lightning arresters. This is used to shield electrical equipment from lightning. There are also high voltage indicators and vacuum tubes that employ it.

Interesting Facts about Neon

1. 0.0018 percent of Earth’s atmosphere is neon.
2. Although it is relatively rare on our planet, neon is the fifth most abundant element in the universe.
3. If you could gather all the neon from the rooms in a typical new home in the United States, you would get 10 liters (2 gallons) of neon gas. 
4. Neon forms in stars with a mass of eight or more Earth suns. Near the end of their lives, these stars enter the carbon burning phase, also making oxygen, sodium and magnesium. (For oxygen production, stars need a mass of ‘just’ five of our suns.)
5. Neon has no stable compounds.