Nitrogen is a colourless, odourless, non-toxic, almost totally inert gas comprising approximately 79% by volume of air. It is non-flammable and will not support combustion. Nitrogen is supplied in cylinders as a high pressure gas, or in insulated containers as a liquid.

Applications

Flow testing, gauge calibration, plastic forming, aerosol propellant, powering air tools, mechanical agitation in photo processing, metal de-gassing, pipeline testing, pressure testing cables and the handling and transfer of flammable liquids. It is useful to prevent the undesirable presence of oxygen and as a purging medium in drying refrigeration systems, catalytic towers in refineries, chemical processing, electronic tube and light bulb manufacture. It is also used for the inert packaging of foods, as a calibration gas and for scientific research.