Helium

A Gas Facing Extinction

T H E P E R I O D I C TA B L E ’ S E N D A N G E R E D E L E M E N T S

1 2

H Limited availability, future risk to supply He

Hydrogen Helium

3 4 Rising threat from increased use 5 6 7 8 9 10

Li Be B C N O F Ne
Serious threat in the next 100 years Boron Carbon Nitrogen Oxygen Fluorine Neon

2
Lithium Beryllium

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Na Mg Al Si P S Cl Ar

He
Sodium Magnesium Aluminum Silicon Phosphorus Sulfur Chlorine Argon

19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36

K Ca Sc Ti V Cr Mn Fe Co Ni Cu Zn Ga Ge As Se Br Kr
Potassium Calcium Scandium Titanium Vanadium Chromium Manganese Iron Cobalt Nickel Copper Zinc Gallium Germanium Arsenic Selenium Bromine Krypton

37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54

Rb Sr Y Zr Nb Mo Tc Ru Rh Pd Ag Cd ln Sn Sb Te I Xe
Rubidium

55
Strontium

56
Yttrium

*
Zirconium

72
Niobium

73
Molybdenum

74
Technetium

75
Ruthenium

76
Rhodium

77
Palladium

78
Silver

79
Cadmium

80
Indium

81
Tin

82
Antimony

83
Tellurium

84
Iodine

85
Xenon

86
Helium
Cs Ba 57 - 71
Hf Ta W Re Os lr Pt Au Hg TI Pb Bi Po At Rn
Cesium Barium Hafnium Tantalum Tungsten Rhenium Osmium Iridium Platinum Gold Mercury Thallium Lead Bismuth Polonium Astatine Radon

87 88 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118

Fr Ra ** Rf Db Sg Bh Hs Mt Ds Rg Cn Nh Fl Mc Lv Ts Og
Francium Radium 89 - 103 Rutherfordium Dubnium Seaborgium Bohrium Hassium Meitnerium Darmstadtium Roentgenium Copernicium Nihonium Flerovium Moscovium Livermorium Tennessine Oganesson

57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71
*Lanthanide
series La Ce Pr Nd Pm Sm Eu Gd Tb Dy Ho Er Tm Yb Lu
Lanthanum Cerium Praseodymium Neodymium Promethium Samarium Europium Gadolinium Terbium Dysprosium Holmium Erbium Thulium Ytterbium Lutetium

89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103

**Actinide
series Ac Th Pa U Np Pu Am Cm Bk Cf Es Fm Md No Lr
Actinium Thorium Protactinium Uranium Neptunium Plutonium Americium Curium Berkelium Californium Einsteinium Fermium Mendelevium Nobelium Lawrencium Source: Chemistry Innovation Knowledge Transfer Network

Helium
Helium is named after the Greek word for the sun,
helios, as it was first identified in the sun’s corona
(the sun is composed of 25% helium).1 The second most As an irreplaceable element
abundant element in the universe, helium is scarce on used in medical diagnostic
equipment, a secure supply
Earth. A product of nuclear fusion and radioactive
of helium relates to U.N.
decay, it is the lightest noble gas, colorless, odorless, Sustainable Development Goal
and inert with a low boiling point. #3: Good Health & Well-Being.

Where is it from? Radioactive

Nucleus 4
On the Earth, most helium is a radioactive decay a tion 2 He
R adi
product of uranium and thorium. It is found
under the Earth’s crust with other natural gases.
Commercial helium is extracted from natural gas New 234
Nuc 90 Th
when the helium concentration is above 0.3%.2 238
leu
s
92 U

T E X A S PA N H A N D L E
30% OF WORLD’S SUPPLY

The U.S., Qatar and Algeria have the world’s major helium
reserves, while the U.S., Russia and Algeria are the top
U.S. Helium Reserve suppliers. In the U.S., helium is found primarily in the Texas
slated to shut
down by 2021 panhandle and Kansas.2

The U.S. Helium Reserve, located deep underground

Amarillo, Texas, is slated to be shut down by 2021; it has
provided 30% of the world’s supply for many years.3
Uncertainty about how private markets will distribute
and price helium is a concern, especially to scientific
researchers using small amounts of helium.

A recent discovery of helium beneath Tanzania may

provide a short-term boost in future helium supply if
development challenges can be overcome.4

How is it used?
While the general public might be most
familiar with helium’s buoyancy—which makes
it ideal for filling birthday balloons, Macy’s
Day Parade figures and blimps—helium has
many other irreplaceable uses:

■ Liquid helium is unique among all elements in that it can

reach ultra-cold temperatures, approaching absolute zero
(-273.15°C). Research conducted at these low temperatures
has led to discoveries in superconductivity that have led to
many applications, including the Maglev high-speed train.2

■ Helium’s cooling properties are indispensable to scientific

research and medical diagnostic equipment including
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines, NMR
spectrometers and even the Large Hadron Collider.1,2

■ Helium is used to cool nuclear reactors and keeps rocket

fuel cool during lift-off.5

■ Due to its unreactive nature, helium provides a protective

atmosphere for making fiber optics, semiconductors, and in
arc welding.1

■ Deep-sea divers breathe a mixture of helium and oxygen,

which helps them avoid the dangers of “the bends.”2

Why is it a critical element?

AT M O S P H E R I C R E C O V E R Y I S
N E A R LY I M P O S S I B L E

Liquid helium boils off and can be

captured and recycled by re-liquefying it.
In the U.S., only a small amount of recycling
infrastructure is in place.2
Helium in recoverable quantities is found
Once helium is released in the atmosphere, in only a few locations around the world,
it will continue rising until it escapes into and these sources are being rapidly depleted.
space, making it the only truly Accordingly, the U.S. has important economic
unrecoverable element. and national security interests in ensuring a
reliable supply of helium.5

PRICE SHOCKS ARE FREQUENT

The cost of helium has increased 250% over the last

five years, making scientific research more expensive.2
+2

The helium market is subject to frequent price shocks.

5 0%

In 2017, the blockade of Qatar suddenly removed 30%

of the world’s helium supply from the market, causing
prices to temporarily skyrocket.4

What can we do about it?

H2

CHEMISTS INDIVIDUALS INSTITUTIONS

■ Work to increase ■ Opt not to buy ■ Establish price controls

recycling infrastructure in helium balloons. and market stabilization
laboratories; capture and measures for scientific
reuse helium that is used research use.2
for instrument cooling, or
■ Fund research labs to
in cryopumps, etc.2
implement small-scale
■ Explore alternatives recycling technology and
such as using hydrogen other methods of
for buoyancy applications reducing helium usage.2
(where flammability is not
objectionable).6

■ Explore the use of

hydrogen to replace
helium as a carrier gas in
gas chromatography.

Find out more about Critical and Endangered Elements: acs.org/endangered-elements

S
SOOU
URRC
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ES
11 Helium.
Helium. Royal
Royal Society
Societyof
ofChemistry
ChemistryPeriodic
PeriodicTable
TablePage.
Page.http://www.rsc.org/periodic-table/element/2/helium
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2 Responding to
2 Responding to the
the U.S.
U.S.Research
ResearchCommunity’s
Community’sLiquid
LiquidHelium
HeliumCrisis.
Crisis.American
AmericanPhysical
PhysicalSociety
SocietyPolicy
PolicyReports
ReportsPage.
Page.
https://www.aps.org/policy/reports/popa-reports/helium-crisis.cfm
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(accessed 2/25/2020)
3 Halperin, W.;
3 Halperin, W.; Hartwig,
Hartwig,W.;
W.;Hayes,
Hayes,S.S.Helium:
Helium:An
AnIrreplaceable
IrreplaceableResource
Resourceand
andWhy
WhyWe
WeMust
MustConserve
ConserveIt,It,
2019. American
2019. American
Chemical Society Webinar Page. https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/acs-webinars/popular-chemistry/helium.html
Chemical Society Webinar Page. https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/acs-webinars/popular-chemistry/helium.html
(accessed
(accessed 2/25/2020)
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4 Tullis, P.
4 Tullis, P. We’re
We’re Running
RunningOut
Outof
ofHelium,
Helium,and
andTwo
TwoGeologists
GeologistsMight
MightHave
Havea aFix.
Fix.Bloomberg
BloombergBusinessWeek.
BusinessWeek.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-08-28/we-re-running-out-of-helium-and-helium-one-might-have-a-fix
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-08-28/we-re-running-out-of-helium-and-helium-one-might-have-a-fix
(accessed
(accessed 2/25/2020)
2/25/2020)
5 About
5 About Helium.
Helium. Bureau
Bureau of
of Land
Land Management.
Management. https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/helium/about-helium
https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/helium/about-helium
(accessed 2/25/2020)
(accessed 2/25/2020)
6 U.S.
6 U.S. Geological
Geological Survey,
Survey,Mineral
MineralCommodity
CommoditySummaries,
Summaries,February
February2019
2019pp
pp76-77.
76-77.
https://prd-wret.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/atoms/files/mcs2019_all.pdf
https://prd-wret.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/atoms/files/mcs2019_all.pdf

© 2020 American Chemical Society