Abstract
In an article by H. C. A. Holleman on the manufacture of rare gases (Philips Tech. Rev., May), a method is described by which rare gases, as well as oxygen and nitrogen are obtained from the air at the Philips’ factories at Eindhoven in Holland. During the Great War, when it became more and more difficult to import the argon necessary for filling the incandescent lamps mado in the factory, they were forced to manufacture the gas itself and a gas lique-faction plant was installed. This plant continued to grow steadily after the War, as it was found to supply many needs. So many different gases, all of which can be obtained from liquid air, are used in the Philips' factories that it was very important to have the whole manufacture under one control. Besides argon, which is used for filling electric lamps, the rare gases helium and neon are also used in gas discharge tubes. For glass blowing and in the machine shops large quantities of oxygen are used in order to reach higher combustion temperatures than it is possible to reach with air. Liquid oxygen and nitrogen are both used on a large scale for cooling purposes and as aids in obtaining a high vacuum.
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Manufacture of Rare Gases. Nature 144, 241 (1939). https://doi.org/10.1038/144241c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/144241c0