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Old May 8th 18, 01:29 AM posted to comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware.storage
VanguardLH[_2_]
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Default "The Helium Factor and Hard Drive Failure Rates"

Lynn McGuire wrote:

VanguardLH wrote:

Helium conducts heat 8 times better than nitrogen or oxygen.
Hydrogen (which is reproducible) is also a good thermal conductor.
Remember what happened to the Hindenburg airship? When the limited
supply of helium gets more rare and its prices soar, we'll probably
be seeing hydrogen- filled hard disks (if rotating magnetic media is
still used by then).


I doubt that hydrogen would ever be used for hard drive atmospheres.
Two phrases, "hydrogen wants to be free", and "hydrogen embrittlement"
come to mind.


And why the components sealed within the drive would have to be hydrogen
resistant. In another post I noted helium is inert, hydrogen is not.

BTW, there is still helium production in the USA.


There is no production of helium. There is only extraction of existing
and limited sources.

One of the Kansas natural gas fields has a large portion of helium in
it. They separate it from the natural gas and sell it.


Yep, just extraction of a non-renewable resource.

SSDs will become more attractive when helium prices soar either due to
increased rarity or artificially due to legislation, like we saw with
R12 refrigerant but, in the case of helium, to protect the dwindling
supplies to critial usage.