USA as Represented by Secretary of the Navy

Terence Donohue

Christine E Geosling

Xenon is isolated from a gaseous mixture containing xenon and krypton. Fline is added to the mixture and the resulting mixture then irradiated with light of about 250-370 nm to form crystals of xenon difluoride. The unreacted gases are removed and the remaining crystals are decomposed, typically by thermal means, to yield xenon and fluorine gas. The xenon gas may be easily isolated by conventional means from the fluorine gas. Krypton may also be easily isolated from the remaining gases by conventional means. The process is particularly applicable to the treatment of offgases from a nuclear reactor or reprocessing plant.

Photochemical method for the separation of mixtures of xenon and krypton

Mixtures of metals are separated by forming salts of the metals which exhibit photoredox activity with an anion selected to provide insoluble salts at one oxidation state and soluble salts at another oxidation state, forming a solution of these salts with a solvent selected to permit a difference in solubility of salts dissolved at different oxidation salts and to be nonreactive with the nonsoluble salts, irradiating the solution with light at a wavelength which changes the oxidation state of the metal ion most susceptive to a change in oxidation state, and separating the insoluble salt formed thereby from the solution.

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Terence Donohue