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Hydrogen Leaks & Is A Potent Greenhouse Gas
Hydrogen prevents high global warming potential methane from breaking down, so this is a big problem for hydrogen for energy
Hydrogen is the gas that’s the second best escape artist in the universe. Helium has it by an edge because while helium is four times the mass of hydrogen per unit, it comes in atoms, not molecules. Hydrogen only comes with another hydrogen atom in the hydrogen molecule, which ends up wider as a result, even if still only half the mass. As result, they treat ordinarily air tight containers and seals as if they are mesh bags.
Anyone who has bought helium balloons only to find that a few hours or a couple of days later they are deflated shells of their former glory has experienced this. Fill the same balloons with your lungs and they’d stay inflated for about 20 times as long.
You could make lighter than air balloons that stayed inflated longer by using hydrogen, but it’s really not recommended, as balloons tend to go with candles and hydrogen really loves flames. Unless you’d like to burn down the venue, best stick to helium. Of course, best to avoid balloons entirely, and certainly don’t let them float up into the sky.
