Nitrous oxide transfer of nitrous oxide from bulk cylinders to smaller, more transportable E-type, 1590 liter-capacity tanks, is legal when the intended use of the gas is for medical anaesthesia. Nitrous oxide Nitrous oxide, commonly known as laughing gas or nitrous, is a chemical compound, an oxide of nitrogen with the formula . At room temperature, it is a colourless non-flammable gas, with a slight metallic scent and taste. At elevated temperatures, nitrous oxide is a powerful oxidizer similar to molecular oxygen. It is soluble in water. Nitrous oxide has significant medical uses, especially in surgery and dentistry, for its anaesthetic and
Industrial gas of its energy rather than "manufactured" for use as a chemical substance or preparation. The oil and gas industry is seen as distinct. So, whilst it is true that natural gas is a "gas" used in "industry" - often as a fuel, sometimes as a feedstock, and in this generic sense is an "industrial gas"; this term is not generally used by industrial enterprises for hydrocarbons produced by the petroleum industry directly from natural resources or in an oil refinery. Materials such as LPG and LNG are complex mixtures often without precise chemical composition that often also changes whilst stored.