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The real reasons why argon makes a good choice for a dry suit inflation gas are: >Because Ar is monatomic, It has the lowest specific heat per molecule (this is the main reason why it is better than air, which is comprised of diatomic molecules N2 and O2). >Because it is only the square-root of molecular mass that determines how well a gas will insulate, Ar is only slightly better than air on the basis of molecular mass. >Ar is a "big" molecule (large thermal scattering cross section). >Ar is practical to use (unlike xenon, krypton, CO2, SF6, CF4, which all make great "theoretical" candidates). Density (mass per volume) doesn't have anything to do with it....At diving pressures, thermal conductivity is independent of density. Regards, EM _____________________________________________________________ Eric Maiken email: ebmaiken@ea*.oa*.uc*.ed* Dept. of Physics o: 714 824-6621 U. of California fax: 714 824-2174 Irvine, CA 92715-4575
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