Two important benefits to insulating glass with gas are preserving energy and avoiding noise. A large source of heat loss in some buildings and structures is from windows.  Float glass used in a basis single paned window is a great way to transfer heat, which in not desirable when designing a building.  By using double or triple panes in the window, the space in between can be filled with an insulating gas. This insulation improves the window\’s ability to preserve heat, leading to reduced energy costs. Insulating gases such as mono-atomic or rare gases are preferred, argon and krypton are the most commonly used.

Most outside noise from airports, railroads, or busy roads tends to leak inside primarily from the windows. Therefore insulating the windows for noise helps to improve the indoor environment.  The key feature of the gas used for noise abatement is density since the more mass per area the better result. Typical gases used include argon and krypton, which can be supplied in either pure form or in mixtures.