AGW Question

[CrusaderFrank]

Earth atmosphere

Argon (Ar) 9,340 ppmv (0.9340%)
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 397 ppmv (0.0397%)

So why don't they insulate windows with CO2?

Q&A: Is it a worth the extra cost to buy windows filled with argon gas?

Argon Gas Window: Benefits of Argon Filled Windows

 

[Abraham3]

Earth atmosphere

Argon (Ar) 9,340 ppmv (0.9340%)
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 397 ppmv (0.0397%)

So why don't they insulate windows with CO2?

Q&A: Is it a worth the extra cost to buy windows filled with argon gas?

Argon Gas Window: Benefits of Argon Filled Windows

Argon is inert. CO2 is not. That's why.

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Earth atmosphere

Argon (Ar) 9,340 ppmv (0.9340%)
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 397 ppmv (0.0397%)

So why don't they insulate windows with CO2?

Q&A: Is it a worth the extra cost to buy windows filled with argon gas?

Argon Gas Window: Benefits of Argon Filled Windows

Argon is inert. CO2 is not. That's why.

Oh, I thought it was for it's heat trapping quality

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Isn't Nitrogen an inert gas too?

 

[Abraham3]

Nitrogen is not inert. You may be thinking of its biological activity. Nitrogen is non-toxic.

Argon does give modest insulation value (as your own link testifies). The question is why don't they use CO2 and the answer is that it is not inert. Additionally, argon's value is not in the thermal energy it traps, but in that it reflects certain parts of the spectrum. If the window filling trapped energy, its temperature would rise and it would radiate heat into the house. This is why if you're even thinking of tinting your car windows and are more interested in heat than looks, you will use a reflective film rather than a tinted film. Reflecting the heat back at its source is far more effective than absorbing it locally.

 

[konradv]

Earth atmosphere

Argon (Ar) 9,340 ppmv (0.9340%)
Carbon dioxide (CO2) 397 ppmv (0.0397%)

So why don't they insulate windows with CO2?

Q&A: Is it a worth the extra cost to buy windows filled with argon gas?

Argon Gas Window: Benefits of Argon Filled Windows

Argon is inert. CO2 is not. That's why.

Oh, I thought it was for it's heat trapping quality

You want the heat to pass through, not get trapped. This seems to be another in a long line of misunderstandings of the concept or is this just your idea of a joke? If it isn't, you don't seem to have the requisite knowledge to comment intelligently on the topic.

 

[mamooth]

Windows lose heat primarily from conduction, not from radiation. So thermal conductivity is what matters, not the IR absorption spectrum.

Thermal conductivities, in Watts/(m*k)

Air 0.024
Argon 0.016
CO2 0.015

So while CO2 would be a touch better at insulation, Argon has the advantage of being heavier, meaning it will leak out more slowly. And Argon is a chemically inert noble gas, while CO2 is not.

 

[Abraham3]

Argon is inert. CO2 is not. That's why.

Oh, I thought it was for it's heat trapping quality

You want the heat to pass through, not get trapped. This seems to be another in a long line of misunderstandings of the concept or is this just your idea of a joke? If it isn't, you don't seem to have the requisite knowledge to comment intelligently on the topic.

I agree you don't want it trapped and that being reflective could trap re-radiated longwave inside the house, but windows are not a large cooling mechanism for any house that I've ever seen. I think it would be best to be reflective to as much EM energy as possible to simply keep it out of the house (but still remain transparent).

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Nitrogen is not inert. You may be thinking of its biological activity. Nitrogen is non-toxic.

Argon does give modest insulation value (as your own link testifies). The question is why don't they use CO2 and the answer is that it is not inert. Additionally, argon's value is not in the thermal energy it traps, but in that it reflects certain parts of the spectrum. If the window filling trapped energy, its temperature would rise and it would radiate heat into the house. This is why if you're even thinking of tinting your car windows and are more interested in heat than looks, you will use a reflective film rather than a tinted film. Reflecting the heat back at its source is far more effective than absorbing it locally.

I think the reflective property is an add-on and has nothing to do with Argon

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Nitrogen is not inert. You may be thinking of its biological activity. Nitrogen is non-toxic.

Argon does give modest insulation value (as your own link testifies). The question is why don't they use CO2 and the answer is that it is not inert. Additionally, argon's value is not in the thermal energy it traps, but in that it reflects certain parts of the spectrum. If the window filling trapped energy, its temperature would rise and it would radiate heat into the house. This is why if you're even thinking of tinting your car windows and are more interested in heat than looks, you will use a reflective film rather than a tinted film. Reflecting the heat back at its source is far more effective than absorbing it locally.

Yeah, pretty sure Nitrogen is listed as an inert gas

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Argon is inert. CO2 is not. That's why.

Oh, I thought it was for it's heat trapping quality

You want the heat to pass through, not get trapped. This seems to be another in a long line of misunderstandings of the concept or is this just your idea of a joke? If it isn't, you don't seem to have the requisite knowledge to comment intelligently on the topic.

Wait. You think people buy insulated windows because it rapidly transfers the heat inside to the great outdoors?

Was that a typo?

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Windows lose heat primarily from conduction, not from radiation. So thermal conductivity is what matters, not the IR absorption spectrum.

Thermal conductivities, in Watts/(m*k)

Air 0.024
Argon 0.016
CO2 0.015

So while CO2 would be a touch better at insulation, Argon has the advantage of being heavier, meaning it will leak out more slowly. And Argon is a chemically inert noble gas, while CO2 is not.

Heavier? Leak out more slowly?

 

[mamooth]

Heavier? Leak out more slowly?

Fill a latex balloon with air, it lasts for weeks. Fill a latex balloon with helium, it shrivels within a day.

Why? Because helium, being a smaller molecule, slips though any size pore much more easily, even atomic-scale pores.

However, it turns out I'm wrong there, as I remembered the molecular weight of Argon wrong. CO2 is actually the heavier gas. (Molecular weight of Argon gas 40, CO2 44).

So it must have to do with the chemical reactivity of CO2 as to why Argon is used, especially in combination with UV light, which a window will get a lot of.

 

[CrusaderFrank]

Heavier? Leak out more slowly?

Fill a latex balloon with air, it lasts for weeks. Fill a latex balloon with helium, it shrivels within a day.

Why? Because helium, being a smaller molecule, slips though any size pore much more easily, even atomic-scale pores.

However, it turns out I'm wrong there, as I remembered the molecular weight of Argon wrong. CO2 is actually the heavier gas. (Molecular weight of Argon gas 40, CO2 44).

So it must have to do with the chemical reactivity of CO2 as to why Argon is used, especially in combination with UV light, which a window will get a lot of.

Actually the gas will leak it the seal is broken or it there is a hole in the window, the weight of the gas has less than nothing to do with that

Argon must beat the crap out of CO2 as a gas we should study for it's heat trapping property in Earth atmosphere

 

[FA_Q2]

Argon is inert. CO2 is not. That's why.

Oh, I thought it was for it's heat trapping quality

You want the heat to pass through, not get trapped. This seems to be another in a long line of misunderstandings of the concept or is this just your idea of a joke? If it isn't, you don't seem to have the requisite knowledge to comment intelligently on the topic.

Holy fuck, apparently asking a question is a terrible thing. Far be it from anyone to seek information on a subject…

 

[FA_Q2]

Nitrogen is not inert. You may be thinking of its biological activity. Nitrogen is non-toxic.

Argon does give modest insulation value (as your own link testifies). The question is why don't they use CO2 and the answer is that it is not inert. Additionally, argon's value is not in the thermal energy it traps, but in that it reflects certain parts of the spectrum. If the window filling trapped energy, its temperature would rise and it would radiate heat into the house. This is why if you're even thinking of tinting your car windows and are more interested in heat than looks, you will use a reflective film rather than a tinted film. Reflecting the heat back at its source is far more effective than absorbing it locally.

Yeah, pretty sure Nitrogen is listed as an inert gas

Then you would be wrong.

http://0.tqn.com/d/chemistry/1/0/8/d/1/PeriodicTableWallpaper.png

Nitrogen is 7, a blue box. The noble gasses are on the right side of the periodic table represented in a yellowish color of which argon is one of them.’

 

[Old Rocks]

Well now, Frankie boy, just look up the absorption spectra for Argon in the infrared. Simple as that for getting and answer to your question.

 

[Old Rocks]

Nitrogen is not inert. You may be thinking of its biological activity. Nitrogen is non-toxic.

Argon does give modest insulation value (as your own link testifies). The question is why don't they use CO2 and the answer is that it is not inert. Additionally, argon's value is not in the thermal energy it traps, but in that it reflects certain parts of the spectrum. If the window filling trapped energy, its temperature would rise and it would radiate heat into the house. This is why if you're even thinking of tinting your car windows and are more interested in heat than looks, you will use a reflective film rather than a tinted film. Reflecting the heat back at its source is far more effective than absorbing it locally.

Yeah, pretty sure Nitrogen is listed as an inert gas

Then you would be wrong.

http://0.tqn.com/d/chemistry/1/0/8/d/1/PeriodicTableWallpaper.png

Nitrogen is 7, a blue box. The noble gasses are on the right side of the periodic table represented in a yellowish color of which argon is one of them.’

And beyond that, NOx would not be a problem were Nitrogen to be an inert gas.

 

[FA_Q2]

Heavier? Leak out more slowly?

Fill a latex balloon with air, it lasts for weeks. Fill a latex balloon with helium, it shrivels within a day.

Why? Because helium, being a smaller molecule, slips though any size pore much more easily, even atomic-scale pores.

However, it turns out I'm wrong there, as I remembered the molecular weight of Argon wrong. CO2 is actually the heavier gas. (Molecular weight of Argon gas 40, CO2 44).

So it must have to do with the chemical reactivity of CO2 as to why Argon is used, especially in combination with UV light, which a window will get a lot of.

Actually the gas will leak it the seal is broken or it there is a hole in the window, the weight of the gas has less than nothing to do with that

Argon must beat the crap out of CO2 as a gas we should study for it's heat trapping property in Earth atmosphere

Not totally true. No seal is perfect on the quantum level and gas WILL escape. That is simple reality and the size of the molecule does alter that possibility. As said before though, carbon dioxide is actually larger though but not by much.

Also, the use of argon vs CO2 has already been established. It is not because it is a ‘better’ insulator but rather that it is a noble gas – a VERY important factor if you want your windows to last awhile and maintain effectiveness.