Skip to content

Krypton (Kr)

A colorless, odorless, nonflammable gas. These applications take advantage of krypton’s inertness, low ionization and high atomic mass.

Request Quote

Krypton (Kr)

Formula: Kr

What is Krypton (Kr) Gas? 

Krypton (Kr) is a rare gas of Group 18 (noble gases) of the periodic table, which forms relatively few chemical compounds. Kr gas is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that occurs in trace amounts in the atmosphere.

Krypton (Kr) Gas Industry Applications

A noble gas, Krypton is used in a wide variety of applications. These applications take advantage of krypton’s low ionization and high atomic mass.

Much krypton is used for window insulation. It insulates better than argon or air when put between the panes of double or triple pane windows. Krypton provides for lower U-factors (higher R-values) with the same window design. Additionally, krypton offers additional benefits with thin spacings between panes making more high-performance designs possible.

Krypton’s physical and chemical properties make it useful in lighting applications. It is used in incandescent, halogen, fluorescent, and high-intensity discharge lamps.

It is a component of excimer laser mixes to produce certain wavelengths. It is a required component in the gas mixes used to produce 222nm (KrCl) and 248nm (KrF) UV.

Krypton is used in sputter deposition, which is a type of physical vapor deposition. It offers advantages when depositing coatings with higher molecular weights. Krypton is more expensive than commonly used argon, but provides a higher yield, and better coating is obtained when coating with heavier atoms. Krypton is often used for sputter coating heavier coatings like titanium.

Krypton is used as a propellant for satellites and other spacecraft. Krypton is a preferred propellant for electric propulsion. Thrusters ionize and expel the krypton using electrical or magnetic fields at up to hundreds of kilometers per second, providing in-space propulsion many times more efficient than conventional chemical propulsion. At these velocities, a little propellant goes a long way.

It is used for the production of semiconductors in annealing, etching, and lithography applications. Krypton acts both as a surface disruption agent and a plasma modulator, influencing the composition of plasmas through secondary ionization. Historically secondary ionization and surface disruption was achieved using argon due to cost and availability, but krypton provides the ability to select for ions present in plasma in additional ways.

At EFC, we offer a wide range of krypton gas purities and concentrations available for purchase. Contact us today.

Applications

Specifications

Further Specifications

Cylinder Sizes

  • A major use is in the lighting industry. Used in incandescent lamps, mixed with nitrogen and argon or nitrogen, argon and xenon. Used in mixtures with argon as a filling gas for fluorescent tubes. Used as a filling gas for various halogen lamps, such as those used in cars, on airfields and in low voltage display lamps.
  • Used to obtain brain X-ray pictures.
  • Used as a triggering agent in discharge type electronic tubes.
  • Used as an insulation gas in windows to reduce noise and heat transfer.
  • Used for certain ion and excimer lasers.
  • Krypton is also used for mass spectrometry and specific area measurements in adsorption applications.
Grade 4 Grade 4.5 Grade 5
Purity 99.99% 99.995% 99.999%
Air (N2+O2+CO+CO2) < 40 ppmv
Nitrogen < 15 ppmv < 4 ppmv
Oxygen < 2 ppmv < 0.5 ppmv
Carbon Monoxide < 1 ppmv < 0.5 ppmv
Carbon Dioxide < 1 ppmv < 0.5 ppmv
Moisture < 10 ppmv < 2 ppmv < 2 ppmv
Total Hydrocarbons < 1 ppmv < 0.5 ppmv
Xenon < 20 ppmv < 1 ppmv
CF4 < 50 ppmv < 0.1 ppmv
Sulfur Hexafluoride < 0.1 ppmv
Halocarbon 116 < 0.1 ppmv
Chemical & Physical Properties
Molecular Weight 83.80
Specific Volume 4.6 cu.ft/lb
Pressure @ 70°F 2,400 psia
Valve Outlet CGA 580
Shipping Data
DOT Name Krypton
Hazard Class 2.2
DOT No. UN 1056
DOT Label Green, non-flammable gas
CAS No. 74390-90-9
Cylinder Size Fill Volume (L)
49L/Size 300 10,000
44L/Size 200 7,000
44L/Size 200 5,000
16L/Size 80 2,000
5.9L/Size 33A 1,000
3.9L/Size 22A 500
2.7L/Size 9A 250
2.7L/Size 9A 100
0.5L/Lecture Bottle 50
0.5L/Lecture Bottle 25

FAQs about Krypton (Kr)

What are the most common uses for Krypton (Kr) gas?

Krypton gas is used between window panes to increase R-value and reduce U-factors for windows. Additionally, Krypton is also used in light bulbs because of its tendency to increase brightness and bulb longevity. Krypton is also used in the making of specialty glass in the automotive, solar and construction industries.

What is the best gas for window insulation?

The most common gases used for window insulation are krypton and argon. Argon is six times denser than air, while Krypton is twelve times denser. Therefore, Kr will slow down the transfer of thermal energy traveling through the windows much more effectively than Argon, making it the more superior gas for insulation.

What industries use Krypton (Kr) gas?

The automotive industry uses krypton gas to make high-quality lights for bright and long-lasting performance. Window manufacturers use Krypton to provide top-quality insulation to their customers. Krypton is also used in the electronics industry to generate laser light in semiconductor manufacturing.

**Moisture level guaranteed only when Electronic Fluorocarbons prepares the cylinders.
All concentrations are on a mol/mol basis unless otherwise stated.
Product sold on the basis of total impurities. Individual impurities may vary slightly.

*This gas not available for purchase online.