'Chua+Ting+Wei'+Xenon+-+Useful+Noble+Gas

 **Specific heat capacity:** 0.158 J g-1 K-1
==== **Heat of atomization:** 0 kJ mol-1  ==== ==== **Heat of fusion:** 2.297 kJ mol-1  ==== ==== **Heat of vaporization:** 12.636 kJ mol-1  ==== ==== **1st ionization energy:** 1170.4 kJ mol-1  ====

**Polarizability volume:** 4 Å3
==== Xenon is a rare, colorless and odorless heavy gas that is inert towards most substances. This noble gas is 0.0000087% of the earth’s atmosphere. Natural xenon composes of 9 stable isotopes with another 20 unstable but characterized isotopes as well. While it had been assumed that noble gases were unable to form compounds in the past, it had been proven that nobles gases, including xenon, do form compounds with more than 80 xenon compounds made with xenon chemically bonded with fluorine and oxygen. ====

**__ History: __**
==== Xenon was discovered via a study of liquefied air on 12 July 1898 by Scottish and English chemists, Sir William Ramsay and Morris M. Travers shortly after their discovery of krypton and neon, two other noble gases. ====



__ **Occurrence and Production:** __
==== Xenon is a trace gas in Earth's atmosphere, occurring at approximately 1 part per 11.5 million, and is also found in gases emitted from some mineral springs. ==== Xenon is obtained commercially as a byproduct of the separation of air into oxygen and nitrogen. After this separation, generally performed by fractional distillation in a double-column plant, the liquid oxygen produced will contain small quantities of krypton and xenon. By additional fractional distillation steps, the liquid oxygen may be enriched to contain 0.1–0.2% of a krypton/xenon mixture, which is extracted either via adsorption onto silica gel or by distillation. Finally, the krypton/xenon mixture may be separated into krypton and xenon via distillation. Extraction of a liter of xenon from the atmosphere requires 220 watt-hours of energy. Worldwide production of xenon in 1998 was estimated at 5,000–7,000 m3. Because of its low abundance, xenon is much more expensive than the lighter noble gases—approximate prices for the purchase of small quantities in Europe in 1999 were 10 €/L for xenon, 1 €/L for krypton, and 0.20 €/L for neon.

Only two oxides of xenon are known: xenon trioxide ( XeO3 ) and xenon tetroxide ( XeO4 ), both of which are dangerously explosive and powerful oxidizing agents. Xenon dioxide (XeO2) remains elusive — only the XeOO+ cation has been identified by infrared spectroscopy in solid argon.
 * __Oxidation of Xenon: __**

**__Uses:__** When electrically excited, xenon produces a bright white flash of light that can be used in strobe lights, to kill bacteria or to power ruby lasers. Xenon can also be used in making electron tubes, and nuclear energy field in bubble chambers and probes. Photographic flashes, high pressure arc lamps for motion picture projection and to produce ultraviolet light. It is used in instruments for radiation detection: neutron and X-ray counters. Xenon is used in medicine as a general anesthetic and in medical imaging. Modern ion thrusters for space travel use inert gases—especially xenon—for propellant, so there is no risk of explosions associated with chemical propulsion. The perxenates of xenon are also used in analytical chemistry as oxidizing agents.

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