Shortages in the helium supply and its rising cost have been widely known issues for those working in industries using helium as a process/trace gas. Due to rising cost, helium users have considered spending money to retrofit their machinery to use other process gases or invest in helium recovery systems to significantly reduce helium consumption.
In the leak testing industry many companies have searched for and are using tracer gases other than helium that have produced adequate testing results for their applications. However, due to its unique properties such as its low (~5ppm) presence in the atmosphere, its non-reactive nature, and its small particle size helium has remained the most widely used trace gas in the last decade.
Many leak test systems currently using helium can be switched over to other gases. Typical examples include a mixture of hydrogen and nitrogen commonly known as forming gas, and others like carbon dioxide and argon.
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