Helium is essential for industrial use and useful element worldwide. It is used in many applications like; scientific research, medicine, for blimp inflation, welding, and party balloons as well.This blog will explain the most common use of helium to help you to understand where we can find helium, what helium is, and its uses in welding and medicine.
Where Can You Find Helium?
It has hundreds of applications, and when you look around, you probably found many of them.
Balloons – it causes balloon float because it is lighter than air.
The Sun – the Sun is 45% of helium.
Lasers – it is used as a shielding GAS because it protects from combustion where other elements might be able to explode at high temperatures.
Compressed Air Tanks – when you see scuba divers, then you know that helium is also used in their tanks. It makes their breathing smooth when mixed with air.
What is Helium Gas?
It was discovered in a total solar eclipse in 1868. When it was found, then it is 2nd most abundant element in the whole known universe as you know that 45% of the sun is made up of helium, but we have no way to access that. It is also stable and referred to as a Nobel gas. Plus, it is non-toxic and tastes like coloration. On the other way, it is not considered as a harmful gas, but too much inhaling of helium also causes asphyxiation. Moreover, another quality of it is incredibly low liquidation point near to absolute zero than all other elements. It means that it would be used to maintain a lower temperature, which is operating refrigerant. However use of liquid helium for this purpose not much efficient, and due to its superfluid, scientists have trouble to contain it in the liquid state.
Helium in Medicine
Canisters of helium are used in the medical industry (for breathing observation). It is essential to cure diseases like; emphysema, asthma, and many others that cause a disturbance while breathing. Liquefied helium used in MRI scan. When element at -269 C is set, then it becomes coolant and useable for an MRI magnet. Mostly it is used to cure diseases of lungs by helping a patient in easy breathing.
Welding Helium Tanks and Other Uses
Additionally, when we were talking about experienced welders, they must have to work with helium at least once in their working experience. It doesn’t matter if they are working with TIG welding gas or MIG welding gas. On subsequent welds, it has an intoxicating effect when a little amount of helium is mixed with it. One primary and high use of helium is; it prevents many chemicals from causing explosions, and it is also the reason that helium is widely used in welding and does the same job as argon. Its inert property makes an excellent shielded gas while a high rate of heat transferring. With best beads, it usually collocates with fast welding. Helium is expensive. So, welders use less amount of helium mixed with argon. It helps to keep their welds smooth by without breaking the bank. It is also used in the helium balloons.