Helium spray.

The helium spray method can be seen as an opposite of the Helium sniffing method. method brings it’s own pros and cons.

How it works

The air inside the tested product is evacuated with a pumping system. This pumping system also has a helium detector integrated, allowing it to measure the helium concentration inside the product. When evacuating the product, gross leaks can also be detected, because gross leaks won’t allow the product to reach vacuum.

If the first test for gross leaks is completed succesfully, the component is sprayed with helium. Should there be a small leak, then this leak will allow the helium to get inside the product. The sensor will detect this helium, and therefore detect the leak.

Schets werkingsprincipe:

Pros:

• Very precise (10^-6 mbar*l/s).
• Ability to pinpoint leak location.
• Relatively cheap.

Cons:

• Operator dependent. Human mistakes are possible.
• Vacuum and tracer gas required.
• Generally low throughput rate.
• Multiple leaks can be masked if too close to each other.