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Right. Most He comes from fractional distillation of natural gas. Some natural gas pockets have up to 7% He. This is where cheap He comes from. Most natural
by _rpd 10y ago
Right. Most He comes from fractional distillation of natural gas. Some natural gas pockets have up to 7% He. This is where cheap He comes from. Most natural gas pockets have a lower concentration, but they will always be more economical sources of He than the atmosphere or nuclear fusion. The "peak He" prediction has the same flaw as the "peak oil" prediction. Helium may get more expensive, but we will not in any sense "run out."
- gozur88 10y agoYep. There will always be enough helium for MRI equipment. But at some point there won't be enough to fill balloons at your kid's birthday party unless you're very wealthy.
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- eru 10y agoOr just use hydrogen.
- delian66 10y ago1) Mixes of hydrogen and oxygen are highly explosive 2) Hydrogen tends to leak with ease even from metal containers (hydrogen molecules are the smallest). 3) There is a tradition to use lighted candles at birthday parties. 1 + 2 + 3 makes for a disturbing (although admittedly fun) combination. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce6imsXTkGQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce6imsXTkGQ
- PhasmaFelis 10y agoThat doesn't mean that the price can't skyrocket until it's nearly as bad as if it had literally run out, though. I don't know what the actual forecasts are at the moment, but it's certainly possible to imagine a world where an MRI costs so much that affordable insurance won't cover it, or where oil costs so much that most people can't afford cars, and the price of goods shipped by combustion engine rises ruinously.