For six years now there have been magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners on the market that don’t consume helium but use just small amounts in a closed-loop system. With MRI scanners accounting for a third of helium demand today worldwide, as well as magnetic field science being another big consumer, what else is afoot in this important space? Christian Annesley reports
Magnetic resonance imaging – MRI for short – is used all over the world for imaging of the human body so healthcare practitioners can see what’s happening inside patients. It has been around for decades and is well-proven and often a crucial diagnosis tool.
Conventional MRI scanners consume helium – and so much of it that the 50,000 or so MRI scanners in use in hospitals and healthcare facilities around the world account for about a third of the world’s helium consumption. Most MRI scanners use between 1,500 and 2,000 liters of helium a year and can consume many liters of helium per hour when in use, taking the lifetime consumption of a scanner to 10,000 liters of helium or even more.
Not surprisingly, therefore, for many years now there have been efforts going into developing lower-helium MRI scanning, and with some success. Helium coolant is expensive and in short supply, so a widely adopted alternative to its use would be transformative. But with this being an important market for helium, it is also a significant move for those that produce and supply helium and needs to be understood.
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