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Xenon [Xe] locate me
CAS-ID: 7440-63-3
An: 54 N: 77
Am: 131.293 (6) g/mol
Group No: 18
Group Name: Noble gas
Block: p-block  Period: 5
State: gas at 298 K
Colour: colourless Classification: Non-metallic
Boiling Point: 165.1K (-108°C)
Melting Point: 161.4K (-111.7°C)
Critical temperature: 289.7K (16.6°C)
Density: 5.894g/l
Availability: Xenon is a "noble" or "inert" gas present in the atmosphere to a small extent (1 part in 20 million).
Discovery Information
Who: Sir William Ramsey, M.W. Travers
When: 1898
Where: Great Britain
Name Origin
Greek: xenon (stranger or strange one).
 "Xenon" in different languages.
Sources
Obtained from the small quantities in liquid air.
Xenon is relatively rare in the Sun's atmosphere, on Earth, and in the asteroids and comets. The atmosphere of Mars shows a similar xenon abundance to that of Earth: 0.08 parts per million. However, Mars shows a higher proportion of 129Xe than the Earth or the Sun. As this isotope is generated by radioactive decay, the result may indicate that Mars lost most of its primordial atmosphere, possibly within the first 100 million years after the planet was formed. By contrast, the planet Jupiter has an unusually high abundance of xenon in its atmosphere; about 2.6 times as much as the Sun.
Abundance
 Universe: 0.01 ppm (by weight)
 Atmosphere: 0.86 ppm
 Earth's Crust: 2 x 10-6 ppm
 Seawater: 1 x 10-4 ppm
Uses
Used in electronic flashes, projection lamps, UV lamps, and other powerful lamps. Also used in bubble chambers and paint testers.
Preferred fuel for Ion Propulsion because of high molecular weight, ease of ionization, store as a liquid at near room temperature (but at high pressure) yet easily converts back into a gas to fuel the engine, inert nature makes it environmentally friendly and less corrosive to an ion engine than other fuels such as mercury or caesium.
History
Xenon was discovered in England by William Ramsay and Morris Travers on July 12, 1898, shortly after their discovery of the elements krypton and neon. They found it in the residue left over from evaporating components of liquid air.
Notes
Recently at the University of Helsinki in Finland some scientists have made HXeOH and HXeCCH (xenon hydride-hydroxide and hydroxenoacetylene), they are stable up to 40K.
Because xenon is heavier than air, the speed of sound in xenon is slower than that in air, and when inhaled, lowers the resonant frequencies of the vocal tract. This produces a characteristic lowered voice pitch, analogous to the high-pitched voice caused by inhalation of helium. The inhalation of xenon is more dangerous than that inhalation of helium. Inhalation can cause mild-to-moderate, short-lasting effects, including a pounding sensation associated with light and sound.
Using gigapascals of pressure, xenon has been forced into a metallic phase.
Hazards
Xenon is non-toxic, but many of its compounds are toxic due to their strong oxidative properties.