Page 37 - Curriculum Visions Dynamic Book

Neon (Ne)
Element 10. A colourless, odourless and tasteless inert gas from group 8, the noble gases, in the Periodic Table.
Neon forms no stable compounds because it is unreactive.
Discovery
Neon was discovered in 1898 by the British chemists Sir William Ramsay and Morris W.Travers.
Technology
Neon glows reddish–orange in a vacuum tube when an electric current is passed through it.The strength of the glow is much greater than for any other gas.That is why its main use is in neon signs. Neon also makes a very effective refrigerating fluid in experiments and a gas laser.
 All lights in discharge tubes are generally called ‘neon’; however, neon only emits a reddish-orange glow. Each
of the rare gases produces a different ‘neon’ colour. For example, helium produces a yellow ‘neon’ light when an electric current flows through it.
Geology
Neon is found in tiny quantities in the atmosphere (0.0018% by volume in dry air). Most neon is recovered by liquefying air and then allowing the neon to boil off for collection.
Biology
Neon is not present in living things.
Key facts...
Name: neon
Symbol: Ne
Atomic number: 10
Atomic weight: 20.18
Position in Periodic Table: group 8 (18) (noble
gases); period 2
State at room temperature: gas
Colour: colourless
Density of gas at 20°C: 1.17 g/l
Melting point: –248.59°C
Boiling point: –246.08°C
Origin of name: from the Greek word neon,
meaning new
Shell pattern of electrons: 2–8
For more on neon, see Volume 1: Hydrogen and the Noble Gases in the Elements set.
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