Today I was working with a client who informed that there is a “shortage” of Helium (He) and prices are starting to rise significantly and this could have a financial impact on their business in the future. Some may not be aware but He is a gas that is used in high purity processes as we see in pharmaceuticals and other “very clean” processes for leak testing. So I did some research and sure enough, there is a legitimate concern that He may be gone in 200 years or so. I also saw where some party stores are actually shutting down stores because they can’t get He for their balloons and other party items. One chain is closing dozens of stores around the USA and the big reason they say is the lack of He availability.
So this got my crazy safety brain spinning…Remember the video I posted last year where there was a ceremony in India and all of a sudden the ballons began exploding? The news outlet and some associated with the event claimed the balloons were filled with Nitrogen (N2), which I can GUARANTEE was not the gas as N2 is NOT lighter than “air” and such the balloons would NOT have been floating in the air! I was emphatic that the gas had to have been Hydrogen (H2) and NOT He or N2, as He and N2 are BOTH INERT GAS – NOT a flammable gas. However, Hydrogen (H2) is the lightest gas on this earth and almost 4X’s lighter than He, so the balloons would be very “buoyant” and they would certain explode like that when they touched the hot lights and popped – releasing the H2 gas, which has a Minimum Ignition Energy (MIE) of around 0.07 mJ. In other words, if we stare at H2 gas long enough we may be able to ignite telepathically! (That is a safety joke!) Here is that video:
SO a safety mind wants to know… Why would anyone use Hydrogen in party/celebration balloons? Well, I am going to go out on a limb and say that these folks were unable to get He at their local party store, so they went looking for another “lighter than air” gas and found out that H2 is even lighter. And just like the “Daily Mail” claimed the balloons in India were filled N2, a lot of folks do not understand flammable gases and just how dangerous they are. Don’t believe me…