Helium is a chemical element with the symbol He and atomic number 2. It is a rare atmospheric gas, colorless, tasteless, tasteless, non-toxic, non-flammable, only slightly soluble in water. Helium concentration in the atmosphere is 5.24 x 10-4 by volume percentage. It has the lowest boiling and melting points of any element, and exists only as a gas, except under extremely cold conditions.

Helium is primarily transported as gaseous or liquid helium and is used in nuclear reactors, semiconductors, lasers, light bulbs, superconductivity, instrumentation, semiconductors and fiber optics, cryogenic, MRI and R&D laboratory research.

The Low Temperature Cold Source

Helium is used as a cryogenic coolant for cryogenic cooling sources, Such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, superconducting quantum particle accelerator, the large hadron collider, interferometer (SQUID), electron spin resonance (ESR) and superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES), MHD superconducting generators, superconducting sensor, power transmission, maglev transportation, mass spectrometer, superconducting magnet, strong magnetic field separators, annular field superconducting magnets for fusion reactors and other cryogenic research. Helium cools cryogenic superconducting materials and magnets to near absolute zero, at which point the resistance of the superconductor suddenly drops to zero. The very low resistance of a superconductor creates a more powerful magnetic field. In the case of MRI equipment used in hospitals, stronger magnetic fields produce more detail in radiographic images.

Helium is used as a super coolant because helium has the lowest melting and boiling points, does not solidify at atmospheric pressure and 0 K, and helium is chemically inert, making it almost impossible to react with other substances. In addition, helium becomes superfluid below 2.2 Kelvin. Until now, the unique ultra-mobility has not been exploited in any industrial application. At temperatures below 17 Kelvin, there is no substitute for helium as a refrigerant in the cryogenic source.

Aeronautics and Astronautics 

Helium is also used in balloons and airships. Because helium is lighter than air, airships and balloons are filled with helium. Helium has the advantage of being nonflammable, although hydrogen is more buoyant and has a lower escape rate from the membrane. Another secondary use is in rocket technology, where helium is used as a loss medium to displace fuel and oxidizer in storage tanks and condense hydrogen and oxygen to make rocket fuel. It could also be used to remove fuel and oxidizer from ground support equipment before launch, and could pre-cool liquid hydrogen in the spacecraft. In the Saturn V rocket used in the Apollo program, about 370,000 cubic meters (13 million cubic feet) of helium was needed to launch.

Pipeline Leak Detection and Detection Analysis 

Another industrial use of helium is leak detection. Leak detection is used to detect leaks in systems containing liquids and gases. Because helium diffuses through solids three times faster than air, it is used as a tracer gas to detect leaks in high-vacuum equipment (such as cryogenic tanks) and high-pressure vessels. The object is placed in a chamber, which is then evacuated and filled with helium. Even at leakage rates as low as 10-9 mbar•L/s (10-10 Pa•m3 / s), helium escaping through the leak can be detected by a sensitive device (a helium mass spectrometer). The measurement procedure is usually automated and is called the helium integration test. Another, simpler method is to fill the object in question with helium and manually search for leaks using a handheld device.

Helium is used for leak detection because it is the smallest molecule and is a monatomic molecule, so helium leaks easily. Helium gas is filled into the object during leak detection, and if a leak occurs, the helium mass spectrometer will be able to detect the location of the leak. Helium can be used to detect leaks in rockets, fuel tanks, heat exchangers, gas lines, electronics, TELEVISION tubes and other manufacturing components. Leak detection using helium was first used during the Manhattan project to detect leaks at uranium enrichment plants. Leak detection helium can be replaced with hydrogen, nitrogen, or a mixture of hydrogen and nitrogen.

Welding and Metal Working 

Helium gas is used as a protective gas in arc welding and plasma arc welding because of its higher ionization potential energy than other atoms. Helium gas around the weld prevents the metal from oxidizing in the molten state. The high ionization potential energy of helium allows plasma arc welding of dissimilar metals used in construction, shipbuilding, and aerospace, such as titanium, zirconium, magnesium, and aluminum alloys. Although the helium in the shielding gas can be replaced by argon or hydrogen, some materials (such as titanium helium) cannot be replaced for plasma arc welding. Because helium is the only gas that’s safe at high temperatures.

One of the most active areas of development is stainless steel welding. Helium is an inert gas, which means it doesn’t undergo any chemical reactions when exposed to other substances. This characteristic is particularly important in welding protection gases.

Helium also conducts heat well. This is why it is commonly used in welds where higher heat input is required to improve the wettability of the weld. Helium is also useful for speeding.

Helium is usually mixed with argon in varying amounts in the protective gas mixture to take full advantage of the good properties of both gases. Helium, for example, acts as a protective gas to help provide wider and shallower modes of penetration during welding. But helium doesn’t provide the cleaning that argon does.

As a result, metal manufacturers often consider mixing argon with helium as part of their working process. For gas shielded metal arc welding, helium may comprise 25% to 75% of the gas mixture in the helium/argon mixture. By adjusting the composition of the protective gas mixture, the welder can influence the heat distribution of the weld, which in turn affects the shape of the cross section of the weld metal and the welding speed.

Electronic Semiconductor Industry 

As an inert gas, helium is so stable that it hardly reacts with any other elements. This property makes it used as a shield in arc welding (to prevent contamination of oxygen in the air). Helium also has other critical applications, such as semiconductors and optical fiber manufacturing. In addition, it can replace nitrogen in deep diving to prevent the formation of nitrogen bubbles in the bloodstream, thus preventing diving sickness.

Global Helium Sales Volume (2016-2027)   

The global helium market reached us $1825.37 million in 2020 and is expected to reach US $2742.04 million in 2027, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.65% (2021-2027). The industry has great uncertainty in the coming years. The forecast data for 2021-2027 in this paper are based on the historical development of the past few years, the opinions of industry experts and the opinions of analysts in this paper.

The helium industry is highly concentrated, sourced from natural resources, and has limited global manufacturers, mainly in the United States, Russia, Qatar and Algeria. In the world, the consumer sector is concentrated in the United States, China, and Europe and so on. The United States has a long history and unshakable position in the industry.

Many companies have several factories, but they are usually not close to their target consumer markets. Therefore, the product has a high transportation cost.

Since the first five years, production has grown very slowly. Helium is a non-renewable energy source, and policies are in place in producing countries to ensure its continued use. Some predict that helium will run out in the future.

The industry has a high proportion of imports and exports. Almost all countries use helium, but only a few have helium reserves.

Helium has a wide range of uses and will be available in more and more fields. Given the scarcity of natural resources, demand for helium is likely to increase in the future, requiring appropriate alternatives. Helium prices are expected to continue rising from 2021 to 2026, from $13.53 / m3 (2020) to $19.09 / m3 (2027).

The industry is affected by economics and policy. As the global economy recovers, more and more people are concerned about improving environmental standards, especially in underdeveloped regions with large populations and fast economic growth, the demand for helium will increase.

At present, major global manufacturers include Rasgas, Linde Group, Air Chemical, ExxonMobil, Air Liquide (Dz) and Gazprom (Ru), etc. In 2020, the sales share of Top 6 manufacturers will exceed 74%. It is expected that the competition in the industry will become more intense in the next few years.

HL Cryogenic Equipment 

Due to the scarcity of liquid helium resources and the rising price, it is important to reduce the loss and recovery of liquid helium in its use and transportation process.

HL Cryogenic Equipment which was founded in 1992 is a brand affiliated to HL Cryogenic Equipment Company Cryogenic Equipment Co.,Ltd. HL Cryogenic Equipment is committed to the design and manufacture of the High Vacuum Insulated Cryogenic Piping System and related Support Equipment to meet the various needs of customers. The Vacuum Insulated Pipe and Flexible Hose are constructed in a high vacuum and multi-layer multi-screen special insulated materials, and passes through a series of extremely strict technical treatments and high vacuum treatment, which is used for transferring of liquid oxygen, liquid nitrogen, liquid argon, liquid hydrogen, liquid helium, liquefied ethylene gas LEG and liquefied nature gas LNG.

The product series of Vacuum Jacketed Pipe, Vacuum Jacketed Hose, Vacuum Jacketed Valve, and Phase Separator in HL Cryogenic Equipment Company, which passed through a series of extremely strict technical treatments, are used for transferring of liquid oxygen, liquid nitrogen, liquid argon, liquid hydrogen, liquid helium, LEG and LNG, and these products are serviced for cryogenic equipment (e.g. cryogenic tanks, dewars and coldboxes etc.) in industries of air separation, gases, aviation, electronics, superconductor, chips, automation assembly, food & beverage, pharmacy, hospital, biobank, rubber, new material manufacturing chemical engineering, iron & steel, and scientific research etc.

HL Cryogenic Equipment Company has become the qualified supplier/vendor of Linde, Air Liquide, Air Products (AP), Praxair, Messer, BOC, Iwatani, and Hangzhou Oxygen Plant Group (Hangyang) etc.