Argon

Argon, #18 on the periodic table, is colorless and odorless, like all of the noble gases. It has an atomic mass of 39.948 amu, and its electron levels are 2-8-8. Ar was discovered by Lord Rayleigh and Sir W. Ramsay in England. It melts at 83.95 K, and boils at 87.45 K. Many people don't realize that argon makes up a full 1% of our atmosphere, while carbon dioxide is only a fraction of a percent of our atmosphere. Argon is primarily used to fill the empty space in incandescent light bulbs, and is used to create a greenish color in "neon" lights. Argon is 2.5 times as soluble in water as nitrogen, and has about the same solubility as oxygen. Argon is very inert, but it does form a hydrate, and ion molecules such as (ArKr)+, (ArXe)+, and (NeAr)+. These, however, do not have true chemical bonds. Natural argon has three stable and five radioactive isotopes. At STP, Ar has a density of 1.784 g/L.

Ar's electron configuration is 1s²2s²p⁶3s²p⁶.

May 18, 1997, updated August 7, 1998

Back to my chem page.

Back to my page.