This was the most important category of helium use until the end of World War II. It is much safer than hydrogen because it is not flammable. Blimps, dirigibles, zeppelins, anti-aircraft balloons, weather balloons, and other lighter-than-air craft have all used helium as a lifting gas. As a lighter-than-air gas, helium has been used as a "lifting gas" for airships and balloons. Helium has the second-lowest atomic weight of any element. Second-lowest specific heat of any gas and the lowest boiling/melting point of any element, there is no foreseen substitute for helium in this very important use. Liquid helium is the cooling substance of choice for regulating the temperature of these magnets. ![]() These magnets generate an enormous amount of heat. These machines utilize a magnetic field that is produced by a superconducting magnet. The number one use of helium is in the magnetic resonance imaging machines used in medical facilities to assess injuries and diagnose illness. Several uses of helium along with the properties that make it suitable for the use are described below. In some of these uses, helium is the best possible gas to use, and in a few there is no adequate substitute for helium. Helium has a number of properties that make it exceptionally well-suited for certain uses. Photo copyright iStockphoto / deepblue4you. Helium enables the drive to use less energy, produce less heat, make less noise, take up less space, hold more data, and produce fewer vibrations than a standard hard drive. Helium in MRI machines: The number one use of helium is cooling the magnets in the MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machines used to diagnose disease and injury in medical facilities.Ī New Use for Helium: The first helium-sealed hard drive was produced in 2013. As a very light gas, it is buoyant and starts rising upwards as soon as it forms. Most of the helium that is removed from natural gas is thought to form from radioactive decay of uranium and thorium in granitoid rocks of the basement rock below the gas field. Related: A New Use of Helium - Hard Drives Why Some Natural Gas Contains Helium This geological situation only occurs at a few locations in the world, and that is why rich helium accumulations are rare. These are the only laterally-persistent rock types that are able to trap and contain the tiny, buoyant helium atoms. The helium then moves upward through porous sedimentary cover until it is trapped with natural gas under beds of anhydrite or salt. The liberated helium is buoyant and moves toward the surface in porosity associated with basement faults. Helium is produced by the decay of uranium and thorium in granitoid basement rocks. Helium-bearing natural gas deposits: Deposit model for helium-bearing natural gas fields in the United States. Other important uses of helium include: a protective gas for welding, an inert gas for controlled atmosphere manufacturing, a fugitive gas used for leak detection, and a low-viscosity gas for pressurized breathing mixtures. In its most important use, liquid helium (a super-cold liquid at -269 degrees Celsius or -452 degrees Fahrenheit) is used to cool MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machines used in medical facilities. ![]() Most people know that helium is used as a lifting gas in blimps and party balloons, but they can't name another way in which helium is used. It has the smallest atomic radius of any element and the second-lowest atomic weight. Helium is a chemical element and a colorless, odorless, tasteless, inert gas. The use that consumes more helium than any other is cooling the magnets in MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machines in medical facilities. Helium Blimp: Most people have heard of helium being used as a lifting gas for weather balloons, blimps, and party balloons.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |