Helium is a noble gas found in small amounts in the atmosphere, less than 0.001% in air.

It has the lowest boiling point and the lowest melting point of the chemical elements and occurs only in the gaseous state outside of extreme conditions.

• Symbol: He
• Purity: ≥99.99%
• Atomic number: 2
• It is an inert, colorless, odorless, tasteless monatomic gas
• In the gas phase it has the highest thermal conductivity after hydrogen
• It is slightly soluble in water

Helium has many applications in everyday life.

Helium is used:

• for cooling uranium rods in nuclear reactors
• balloons and airships are often inflated with helium because it is lighter than air
• for metal processing, as an inert protective gas for arc welding
• for cooling superconducting magnets
• for leak detection
• mixed with a heavier gas, such as xenon, is useful for thermoacoustic refrigeration
• at low temperatures it is used in cryogenics
• for gas chromatography
• as a transport gas for oxygen, for diving at great depths
• for MRI magnetic resonance scans