Despite being the second most abundant element in the universe, helium is actually quite rare on Earth because it is easily blown away by the solar wind.
Mining operations at a helium mine near Chambers, Arizona, USA. Photo: AZ Central
Not only used in balloons, helium also has many surprising properties and applications in the world , according to IFL Science . Helium is created through the natural decay of radioactive uranium and thorium, but this process takes billions of years. Currently, helium is collected from underground natural gas pockets as a byproduct of natural gas refining.
Because helium is so light, any helium lost from its storage or production floats to the edge of the atmosphere and is blown away by the solar wind. This is why helium is often described as the only truly nonrenewable resource, according to the American Chemical Society. "It takes many, many millennia to create helium on Earth. It's the only element on the entire periodic table that escapes the Earth and goes into space," says Sophia Hayes, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis.
Helium is useful because it is extremely cold. It has the lowest boiling point of any element, at -268.9 degrees Celsius. This makes it an especially good choice for cooling superconducting magnets in MRI machines, and even as rocket fuel for space travel. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Switzerland needs about 120 tons of helium per week to run, according to Bloomberg.
"Helium is a non-renewable resource. NASA and SpaceX need helium for rocket fuel. MRI machines need helium. The pharmaceutical industry depends on helium and so does the Department of Defense ," said Bill Halperin, a physics professor at Northwestern University.
The US Federal Helium Reserve System, established in 1920 for use in balloons, supplies about 40% of the world’s helium. Now, that supply could be sold to the private sector in a few months, disrupting the helium supply chain. Only a few other countries have significant helium resources, including Qatar, Tanzania, and Algeria. Russia also plans to open a new helium plant, but the fighting in Ukraine could make that plan uncertain.
Estimates of the world’s helium reserves vary widely. In 2019, David Cole-Hamilton, emeritus professor of chemistry at the University of St Andrews, estimated that the world had only 10 years’ worth of helium left unless countries made greater efforts to recycle it. The best estimates of remaining helium reserves range from 100 to 200 years.
An Khang (According to IFL Science )
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