Dear Readers:
Argon for Diving :boom:
This gas is not really good for diving. It is much more narcotic than nitrogen and is very fat soluble. This solubility means that a great deal of it will dissolve in fat tissue. During decompression, there is the potential that this will be released as gas bubbles into the blood stream. When this occurs, there is a considerable potential that bubbles could pass the lungs and reach the brain. This can lead to very serious outcomes even death of the diver.
Crude Neon
In the 1970s, Drs eintz Schreiner and Bill Hamilton and his staff tested the use of crude neon for diving. This is a mixture of helium and neon and is recovered from industrial plants that produce liquefied air. [In these plants, the primary objective is to recover liquid oxygen; several byproducts remain, e.g., the helium/neon mixtures.]
Because this gas was essentially available to commercial divers worldwide, it might serve as a substitute for helium, available only in North America and Russia. This was one rational behind its use.
Animal and Human Trials =-)
Experiments were first performed with pigs diving on the neon/helium mixtures with good results. The animals were observed for DCS and venous (Doppler) bubbles. [Powell MR. Doppler ultrasound monitoring of venous gas bubbles in pigs following decompression with air, helium, or neon. Aerosp Med. 1974 May; 45(5): 505-8.]
Later trials with human divers yield very good results. The advantages over pure heliox were never great enough to consider it to be economical for commercial use. It did have good thermal, voice, and decompression characteristics.
Dr Deco :doctor: