Inert gas Inert gas An inert gas/noble gas is a gas which does not undergo chemical reactions under a set of given conditions. The noble gases often do not react with many substances, and were historically referred to as the inert gases. Inert gases are used generally to avoid unwanted chemical reactions degrading a sample. These undesirable chemical reactions are often oxidation and hydrolysis reactions with the oxygen and moisture in air. The term "inert gas" is context-dependent because several of the noble gases can be made to react under certain conditions. Purified argon and nitrogen gases are most commonly used as
Phase-out of incandescent light bulbs significant health risks to adults, including pregnant women, or to children. If all electricity was generated by a coal power plant (which produce about half the electricity the U.S. consumes) and fluorescent light bulbs were all recycled with no mercury being lost, nearly 75% less mercury could be released in power plant emissions if incandescent bulbs were replaced by fluorescents, and with significantly less total mercury release even if no recycling occurred. However, a concern is that broken bulbs will introduce the mercury directly into a populated indoor area. Though more recent analysis indicates that the concerns about mercury release