Scientists are recommending that a rare but potent greenhouse gas should be included in future climate agreements after confirming that the gas is about four times more abundant than previously believed. Nitrogen trifluoride (NF_3) is commonly used to etch microcircuits in plasma-screen televisions and other flat-panel displays. As a greenhouse gas, NF_3 is about 17,000 times more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, but very little was thought to escape into the atmosphere.
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