• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Science / What is neon gas and where does it come from?

What is neon gas and where does it come from?

May 13, 2020 by Karen Hill

There’s a little bit of neon in the air we breathe, so yes, our atmosphere contains neon.

neon sign

You can extract it by using a process called adsorption. That involves superchilling the air at temperatures below —411 °F so it becomes a liquid. When you run the super cold liquid over charcoal, the neon molecules stick to the charcoal.

By raising the temperature, you can “boil off” and capture the neon. Unfortunately, there’s not that much neon in the air.

Manufacturers end up having to process 88,000 pounds of liquefied air to get one pound of neon.

Related Facts

  • What Is the Best Type of Fire For Grilling: Charcoal or Gas, and Why?
  • What is the Difference between Grilling and Barbecuing and Is Charcoal Better Than Gas?
  • How Does a Neon Sign Work?
  • How Does Perspiration and Evaporation Help Cool Us Down?
  • How do neon signs glow and What does the word neon mean in Greek?
  • Why Does Warm Air Hold More Moisture Than Cold Air?

Filed Under: Science

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Can you save energy by leaving fluorescent lights on all the time instead of turning them on and off?
Next Post: What’s the difference between neon lights and fluorescent lights? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy