The History of Helium: From Discovery to Modern Uses
Helium has many uses, from entertainment to manufacturing, and its discovery has had a huge impact on scientists worldwide. As premium helium gas suppliers, there isn’t much we don’t know about the gas. However, we don’t like to gatekeep, and to share our knowledge, we’ve delved into the history of helium below.
Discovering Helium in the Infrared Spectrum
It’s been over 150 years since the event that eventually led to the discovery of helium, but not many people know that it was actually discovered in space before it was found on Earth. There was a total eclipse in 1868 observed by people in Asia, including astronomers Jules Jansses from France and Norman Lockyer from England. They both decided to use a spectroscope to analyse the different wavelengths of light and match them with previous examples of the light spectrum taken not during an eclipse, and they found something new. This is similar to when we see a light split in a prism, with each colour being an element that makes up our star, and until now, a large yellow line of light has not been observed.
It was decided this was a new element within our sun, and it was named helium. But it wasn’t until many years later, in 1895, when Sir William Ramsay completed an experiment that found helium on Earth, specifically in a mineral called cleveite.
Early Exploration of Helium
Once helium was found on Earth, it was elevated from a distant curiosity in space to a tangible resource with a lot of potential for industrial and commercial applications. The main characteristic found through experimentation was that helium remained a gas even at incredibly low temperatures. While this would find many applications in the modern age, at this time, it was focused on changing air travel, such as the well-known airships of the early 20th century.
Liquid helium would eventually be created to explore how low-temperature scientists could take the gas. Once the gas was cooled to just above absolute zero (-258.95°C), it would become a liquid, which Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes then used to explore superconductivity in metals.
Most metals have a certain electrical resistance that results in energy losses when an electrical current passes through; however, when the metal is at a lower temperature, this loss is eliminated, and the metal could be described as ‘superconductive’. This achievement would lead to amazing applications, from industrial welding, MRI machines, particle accelerators and more.
Industrial Uses for Helium: Welding and Leak Detection
While most people think of helium canisters as the fun gas that just fills balloons and makes your voice funny, this versatile gas has been used in some of the most advanced scientific and widespread industrial applications in the world.
Industrial Welding with Helium
When welding in the open air, the molten metal reacts with oxygen and nitrogen in the atmosphere, which can lead to weak and brittle welds; this is why Industrial helium tanks are used as a shielding gas for the most reliable results in processes like Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) and Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW). When helium is used, it forms a protective shield around the molten metal, preventing atmospheric gases from contaminating the weld. Helium’s high thermal conductivity helps to create a hotter arc, which can be particularly beneficial when welding thicker materials. It also enhances the weld pool’s stability, making the process smoother and more controlled.
Where is Helium Shielding Gas Used?
Aerospace: to help withstand extreme environmental conditions
Automotive: to guarantee durability and component performance
Shipbuilding: to build resistance to saltwater and impact damage
Construction sectors: to support building stability and safety
These all demand structural integrity and require reliably high-quality welds with helium shielding gas.
Helium in Manufacturing Leak Detection
Helium is essential for ensuring high-vacuum systems and critical components are perfectly sealed; in context, this includes semiconductor manufacturing and pharmaceutical manufacturing, two locations where a contaminated environment will ruin the products being made.
In more advanced scientific environments, we find helium being used to support the very technology that was used to discover it: spectrometry. Helium is introduced into the system, and its small atoms can escape through even the tiniest leaks. A mass spectrometer then detects the escaping helium, pinpointing the exact location of the leak. Helium’s inert nature prevents it from reacting with the materials being tested, making it ideal for maintaining the integrity of semiconductor components, refrigeration systems, and space hardware.
Helium in MRIs
Helium is also a part of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machines. These machines rely on powerful superconducting magnets that need to be cooled to extremely low temperatures to maintain their superconducting state.
Liquid helium is used to cool these magnets, ensuring they achieve and sustain the necessary high field strength and stability. This cooling allows MRI machines to generate precise, high-resolution images, which are vital for accurate medical diagnoses and effective treatment planning. The use of helium thus directly enhances the quality and reliability of MRI scans, making it indispensable in the field of medical imaging.
